Brazil exported an "unexpectedly low" volume of coffee in September, recording a 24 percent decline year-on-year, exporters association Cecaff said on Tuesday, as farmers hold out for higher prices. The world's largest coffee producer shipped 2.04 million 60-kg bags of green coffee last month, compared to 2.69 million bags in September last year, Cecaff said.
The results missed Cecaff's expectation of a roughly 20 percent increase in September from the 2.11 million bags seen in August, saying last month that offers in the market were improving and returning to a more normal level. "We see two main factors behind this unexpected number," said Cecaff head Nelson Carvalhaes in a statement. "One is the smaller crop this year. The other is the behavior of farmers, who are not willing to sell much."
"It is very difficult to predict any moves from now on, because September has always been considered a strong month for coffeee exports," Carvalhaes added Farmers faced with low prices have been slow to sell the current crop, and drier-than-normal weather for most of August and September increased that caution, since it became difficult to guess producing potential for next year.
Many think the prospect of a super-crop next year is gone after the harsh drought and a smaller harvest could push up prices. Recent rains have spurred flowering, although more is needed to improve soil moisture.
Brazil green coffee exports from January to September reached 19.33 million bags, 10 percent below the volumes seen in the similar period a year earlier. The United States was the main destination with 20 percent, followed by Germany, Belgium and Japan.