ICO - Global coffee exports slip by 2.9%

Global coffee exports have declined by 2.9% to 95.11 million bags during the 2007-08 crop year, reports agency sources.

According to the International Coffee Organization (ICO), in 2006-07, global coffee exports stood at 97.96 million bags. During 2007-08 (the coffee year runs from November to October), world arabica and robusta exports totaled 62.5 million bags and 32.6 million bags, respectively.

India, which is at the fourth position in the list of coffee-exporting countries, shipped 1.7 million bags of robusta and 740,000 bags of other milds during November-October 2007-08, ICO data showed.

The world`s largest exporter, Brazil, witnessed a 4.17% fall at 24.54 million bags, Tanzania by 7.82% at 742,608 bags and Cameroon by 23.13% at 566,383 bags, it said.

For the 2008-09 crop year, the ICO has projected 11% increase in global coffee production at 131 million bags as compared with 118.2 million bags in a year-ago period. Meanwhile, the coffee demand in 2008 is estimated to be 128 million bags, it said, adding that consumption levels in traditional markets are likely to be maintained despite the current financial crisis. - MyIRIS