Asia coffee: Thin trade ahead of new harvest in Vietnam

HANOI/BANDAR LAMPUNG: Trading activity in Vietnam, the world’s biggest robusta producer, remained tepid as its harvest season is expected to commence by mid-November, traders said on Thursday, while premiums dropped in Indonesia. In theory, new crop in Vietnam starts from October but beans will not come in bulk until November, traders said. Farmers in the central highlands, Vietnam’s largest coffee-growing area, were selling beans for 59,600-61,400 dong ($2.42-$2.50) per kg, down from last week’s 63,000-63,800 dong.

“Beans, although very few, have started to come so the domestic prices were down a little,” said a trader based in the coffee belt. “The output should be somewhat the same as the previous one.”