Coffee exports in Ethiopia were 50% below target in the past nine months of the financial year and are expected to decrease even further.
Ethiopia had anticipated raising 1.17 billion US dollars from the export of 288,000 tons of coffee. The failure to meet targets was due to the instability of the international market claimed Kebede Chane Minister of Trade. It is expected that coffee exports will reach 70% of target by the end of the fiscal year he said.
The country exported 98,000 tons of coffee in the first nine months which amounted to 48% of target exports raising 66% of the target revenue.
It is hoped that new contracts will increase exports according to Kebede. Coffee contracts for 23,000 tons and 33,000 tons were signed with international buyers and exporters in April and May respectively explained Kebede.The price of coffee beans went down as the international market for coffee slowed leading to a decline on the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange said an expert at the exchange.
The decline in prices has resulted in coffee suppliers hoarding their product to wait for the prices to increase on the international market said the expert.
Suppliers should be selling to at least break even advised Kebede.
It is expected that the export of other agricultural products such as oilseeds will compensate for the deficit in coffee according to the Minister.
It may however be difficult to raise the foreign currency that was expected from the export of coffee from other agricultural products according to experts.
Source: Capital
