In June, the country exported 34,000 tons of coffee, registering a fall of 25.5% compared to 46,000 tons sold in the same month in 2017.
The price of coffee also recorded a decline, according to figures from the Center for Procedures for Exports (Cetrex), in June this year $150 per hundredweight was paid, representing a decrease of 10% compared to the $167 paid in the sixth month of 2017.
Due to the climatic conditions predicted for the months of July and August, an increase is expected in the presence of the disease in coffee plantations in Costa Rica.
During July there is a typical decrease in rainfall known as "la canícula", a period in which Rust progresses slowly and the emergence of new lesions is less.However, at the same time there is a greater presence of spores in the lesiones favored by the warmer temperature and by weaker and less frequent rains.This situation will promote a largeincrease in the disease in the majority of the Costa Rican coffee plantations when more abundant rains return starting in August, reported the Coffee Institute of Costa Rica (Icafé).
Factors such as the international price and a reduction in productivity, explain the 60% drop in production of this grain in Costa Rica 's Central Valley over the last 17 years, ceding the land space to real estate development.
Areas in the Central Valley that had previously been considered the best for coffee growing, have been giving way in recent years to new constructions, both residential and commercial, mainly east of San José.
The sector union foresees that for the 2017-2018 harvest foreign currency generated from sales abroad will fall by 14% with respect to the previous season.
Explained by a drop in the average price per hundredweight of exports, which fell from $145 in the 2016-2017 season to $123 so far in the current harvest, the Honduran Coffee Institute (Ihcafé) envisages a 14% decrease in income from sales abroad.
Over the last few weeks the exporters trade union has canceled several shipments abroad, due to the risk involved in moving the cargo through blocked roads.
The Association of Coffee Exporters of Nicaragua (Excan), warned that "...At the moment these cancellations can be renegotiated with buyers to avoid serious consequences, but the longer this crisis extends, the effects for exporters and the country could be irreversible."
As it has not yet been possible to send the samples abroad due to the crisis felt across the country, the association of special coffees has decided to postpone the online auction until June 19.
The initial date of the electronic auction of coffee samples in the Cup of Excellence competition was scheduled to be June 5, but since samples could not be sent to international buyers, a decision was taken to postpone it by a few days.
The prices of the three groups of the Arabica variety fell in April, but the highest month-on-month reduction was recorded in the price of natural coffees in Brazil.
In April 2018, theICO composite indicator decreased by 0.4%to an average of 112.56 US cents/lb, with the daily price ranging between 110.49 US cents/lb and 114.73 US cents/lb.Prices for all three Arabica groups fell in April 2018, though the largest month-on-month decrease occurred for Brazilian Naturals, which fell by 0.9% to 118.76 US cents/lb.
In the 2016/17 agricultural cycle coffee production amounted to 130,000 hundredweight, registering an increase of 8% compared to the previous harvest.
The Comptroller General of Panama reported that "... coffee activity for the 2016/17 agricultural year produced a harvest of 130,100 piled tons, and when this crop was compared with the 2015/16 agricultural year, which was 120,100, an increase was observed of 10,000 piled hundredweight, largely due to the fact that in the cultivations there is a large number of productive trees declared for this year and good flowering in the province of Chiriquí, which represented 79.5% of the total of the national harvest."
The Honduran Coffee Growers Association has stated that exports of the special grain will continue to increase, and in the present harvest they plan to export three million bags of differentiated coffee.
Representatives from the Honduran Coffee Institute (Ihcafé) announced that so far this season, they have sold more than one million bags of speciality coffee, equivalent to $1.144 million, and the main destination markets are the United States and Europe.
After a slight increase in the first month of 2018, in February international prices fell by 1%, due to the negative behavior of three groups of the Arabica variety.
From the monthly report by the International Coffee Organization:
After a slight rise in January following a three-month decline, the monthly average of the ICO composite indicator fell by 1.2% in February 2018 to 114.19 US cents/lb.
In the first nine months of 2017, countries in the region exported $2.795 million worth of coffee, 29% more than was sold during the same period in 2016.
Figures from the information system on the the Coffee market in Central America, compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption = "Click to interact with the graph"]
Government and representatives of the sector have announced the creation of a work commission that will focus on defining new strategies to boost the coffee activity in the country.
Representatives from the Central Bank of Nicaragua (BCN) and coffee producers held a session in which they agreed to work together on various issues that impact on the activity of the sector, among which, are the effects caused by pests.
Up until March 5, the volume exported from the current 2017/18 harvest amounted to 3.6 million bags, 17% more than was reported on the same date of the 2016-2017 cycle.
According to figures from the Honduran Coffee Institute (Ihcafe), the value of sales of the grain abroad showed a behavior contrary to the volume exported. "...The value of exports is $446.5 million, showing a decrease of 1% compared to $450.5 million."
In 2017 exports totaled $4,564 million, 17% more than what was recorded in 2016, due to an increase in coffee and palm oil sales.
The Central Bank of Honduras (BCH) reported that the increase reported in 2017 is attributed to " ... increased sales of coffee, palm oil, shrimp, iron and its manufactures and paper and cardboard, products that together explain 89.9% of the observed annual increase."
After reaching its lowest level in 22 months in December 2017, the monthly average of the ICO composite indicator price increased by 1.4%.
From the monthly report by the International Coffee Organization:
Coffee market recovers slightly from December slump
After reaching its lowest level in 22 months in December 2017, the monthly average of the ICO composite indicator price increased by 1.4% to 115.60 US cents/lb in January 2018.