HANOI/BANDAR LAMPUNG: Coffee trading in Vietnam was sluggish this week as farmers held back from selling coffee beans due to unattractive offered prices and weak demand, while prices edged up in Indonesia on limited supplies, traders said on Thursday.

Farmers in the Central Highlands, Vietnam’s largest coffee-growing area, sold beans at 38,400 dong to 40,100 dong ($1.64-$1.71), down from last week’s 40,100 dong to 41,200 dong range. March robusta futures on ICE have shed $62 in a week, settling at $1,811 per tonne as of Wednesday’s close.

“Market is dull. London prices are low. Farmers, although under pressure to cash in for Lunar New Year holidays, are not willing to sell at that low,” said a trader based in the coffee belt. Traders in Vietnam offered 5% black and broken-grade 2 robusta at a discount range of $80-$90 per tonne to the May contract.

Vietnam’s coffee exports in December were up 53.5% from the month before at 197,077 tonnes, government customs data showed. For 2022, Vietnam exported 1.78 million tonnes of coffee, up 13.8% from a year earlier.

Coffee export revenue for that period reached $4.1 billion. In Indonesia’s Lampung province, traders offered robusta beans at $130 premium to the March contract and $180 to $190 premium to the February contract. Last week, they offered $100 premium on January and $180 premium on February contract.

“Prices rose slightly because not many beans were coming to Bandar Lampung,” said one of the traders. “We are not yet in harvest season. There were very few sales taking place.”