Coffee exports fall 4% in Jan-July to 0.22 mn tonnes

In value terms, Indian exporters earned Rs 3,210 cr, a fall of 4.5% over the same period last year

India's coffee exports have declined four per cent to 217,492 tonnes between January and July, compared to 226,703 tonnes in the corresponding period last year. In value terms, Indian exporters earned Rs 3,210 crore, a fall of 4.5 per cent over the same period last year.

The unit value realisation was marginally lower at Rs 1,47,605 per tonne, compared to Rs 1,48,256 per tonne in the year ago period. In US dollar terms, the value of exports declined 11.36 per cent to $596.73 million as against $673.28 million in the corresponding period last year.

"Coffee exports are more or less in line with our expectations. We had projected a five-10 per cent drop in exports this year. The continued economic slump in western European countries, which is the major market for Indian coffee, has affected our exports. Also, the sharp drop in Arabica prices owing to a bumber crop in Brazil has added to the woes of exporters," Ramesh Rajah, president, Coffee Exporters Association of India said.

He said for the full year ending December 2013, India's exports would be 290,000 tonnes, a drop of six per cent over the previous year. In 2012, India exported 307,776 tonnes.

Arabica coffee has seen a drop of 15-20 per cent during the last six months from $1.50 a pound in January this year to $1.25 a pound presently. This was largely due to a bumper crop harvested by Brazil this year. "The exporters could not make much benefit out of rupee depreciation in the recent days as the prices also fell. However, the realisations from Robusta are likely to be better in the coming months," Rajah added.

Out of total exports, Indian origin coffee accounted for 174,700 tonnes, which is a decline of 10 per cent over the same period last year. Between January and July 2012, the country exported 194,228 tonnes of Indian origin coffee.

Coffee exporters from India import raw coffee and add value before re-exporting to various countries. During the first seven months of the current calendar year, India re-exported 42,792 tonnes, a growth of 31.7 per cent over the same period last year. Last year, the country re-exported 32,475 tonnes of coffee, which is mainly instant coffee.

India exports coffee to Italy, Germany, the Russian Federation, Belgium, Jordan, Slovenia and the United States among other countries. Italy is the largest market for Indian coffee and contributes 25.6 per cent of the total exports, followed by Germany, which contributes 10.7 per cent of the total exports.

For the first four months of the current financial year from April to July, India's coffee bean exports were down 6.6 per cent. The exports declined to 118,769 tonnes in the period as against 127,187 tonnes in the same period last financial year.