Vietnamese farmers hold coffee beans as prices fall

Vietnamese coffee farmers are slowing down sales as prices fall amid slow demand, in hopes that prices recover back above the 40,000 dong per kg level, traders said on Tuesday. Farmers in the world's largest robusta producer are holding onto stocks from the 2013/2014 harvest, not wanting to sell at prices that have dropped below that key value, two traders in Ho Chi Minh City said.
Robusta beans eased to 39,100-39,300 dong ($1.85-$1.86) per kg in Daklak, the country's largest coffee-growing province, from 39,400 dong on Monday and 39,300-39,700 dong a week ago. Discounts of Vietnamese robusta grade 2, 5 percent black and broken beans this week were at $70 a tonne to London's July contract, compared to $50-$80 a tonne a week ago. Liffe July robusta coffee felt 0.55 percent at $1,992 a tonne at 830 GMT on Tuesday. The market was closed on Monday for holiday. Traders have forecast Vietnam's coffee exports this month, the eighth month of the 2013/2014 crop year, at 150,000-220,000 tonnes, down from an estimated 220,000 tonnes in April.