'Coffee exports may fall in Apr-June'

Coffee exports are likely to decline in the April-June quarter this year due to sluggish domestic supply of Arabica and weak global demand for Indian coffee, the Coffee Exporters Association said today.

"The outlook is not very positive as we expect the shipments to drop in the next quarter (April-June). Exports could come down because supply of Arabica is low owing to dip in production," Association's President Ramesh Raja said.  

The exports grew in January-February on yearly basis as India had the advantage of meeting the global demand following output fall in major growing countries Brazil and Columbia, he said, adding that exports in March would be higher.

Echoing opinion, a coffee trader A N Devraja said, "The supply of Arabica is expected to be good in March but there could be a drop from May onwards."

According to the post-monsoon estimates of the Coffee Board, Arabica production is estimated to have come down by 4.52 per cent to 95,000 tonnes in the 2010-11 season, as against post-blossom estimates of 99,500 tonnes. 

Citing price factor as also one of the reasons for a possible decline in exports in the coming months, Raja said, "Last year, our prices were low and hence we shipped more coffee. But now, our prices have risen and we do not expect the growth to be that good."

India, Asia's second biggest coffee exporter, has shipped 53,905 tonnes in the first two months of the 2011 calendar year, as against 36,670 tonnes in the same period last year. 

Meanwhile, the Coffee Board said that the coffee prices could rise in future considering the fast growth in global and domestic consumption and limited scope for increase in production.