Vietnam is targeting an annual 4.3 per cent increase in export turnover from coffee between now and 2010, with the export volume predicted to increase slightly while prices are expected to rise sharply.
The country is forecast to ship around 900,000 tons of coffee abroad annually at an averaged price of USUS$850 per ton, according to an export orientation strategy set by the Ministry of Trade for the 2006-2010 period.
This way, total earnings from coffee exports are likely to reach USUS$958 million in 2010, the ministry said.
Statistics released by the ministry showed that Vietnam fetched USUS$725 million from exporting 885,000 tons of coffee last year, up 13.1 per cent in value but down 9.2 per cent in volume against the previous year.
Of the total earning, USUS$319 million came from coffee shipments to the European Union market, followed by those to the US and Japan with respective figures of USUS$90 million and USUS$29.7 million.
Vietnamese coffee has to date been made available in more than 50 countries and territories all over the world. The main importers of Vietnamese coffee are the EU, northern European countries and the US. Exporters are currently increasing their trade promotion activities in ASEAN countries, with a particular focus on China.
In the 2006-2010 period, Vietnamese coffee exporters will aim for potential markets such as the US, EU, Switzerland, Japan, Singapore, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Canada, and Russia.
In order to meet the target, the sector will need to take advantage of export markets to gain the best possible prices for available products, promote transactions and export movements in international markets to gain higher export prices, pay increased attention to post-harvest activities like drying coffee so as to meet the standards required to gain the best possible prices for their products, and continue to work on developing trademarks for processed coffee.
According to the Vietnam National Coffee Corporation (VNCC), the export price of Vietnamese coffee are likely to drop because of a recovery in global coffee production.
Vietnamese coffee was offered March 6 at USUS$1,170 per ton, FOB Saigon Port, about USUS$150 lower than at the beginning of the year.
Falling export prices are already being reflected in domestic bulk purchases, according to an official from the corporation.
The price for Robusta beans in central highlands Dak Lak and Lam Dong provinces, the largest coffee growing area in Vietnam, fell by VND1 million (USUS$63.2) per ton to VND17.5 million (USUS$1,107) last week.
Market watchers said falling prices were unavoidable when major coffee producing nations, including Brazil and Indonesia, prepare to harvest crops in April and May. Domestic prices are expected to slip to about VND17 million (USUS$1,075) per ton within the next two months, they added.
The VNCC said market speculators and farmers themselves were inclined to hold out for higher prices, leading to a decline in domestic supplies trading on local markets.
It said Vietnam’s total yield of coffee this year will be 100,000 tons lower than last year or about 600,000-630,000 tons – a decline attributable to ongoing droughts in some regions.
The association suggested the government and the sector work together to emplace measures to ensure coffee cultivation provides a stable annual yield of 750,000 tons.
VnExpress
Vietnamese
