Coffee Price Hits Highest Level in Almost Two Years, Colombia Production Exceeds 14 Million Bags

The October stats are in, and the composite coffee price hit its highest level in 21 months, according to the International Coffee Organization (ICO). The month average of ICO’s composite indicator, lifted by concerns over the low supply of robusta variety, jumped to $1.43 USD per pound.

The daily price continued rising throughout October, beginning at $1.36 per pound and finishing at $1.50, the largest increase in a month since March 2016.

Robusta, the low-quality beans that are not grown in Colombia, hit its highest value in two years at $1.03 per pound. Colombian milds, a category of high-end Arabica beans produced domestically, reached $1.72 per pound. This represents a new peak in a price rally that has been progressing all year since a low of just $1.35 per pound in January.

October marks the end of the crop year for coffee production, and overall global exports were down by 0.7% to 111.8 million bags. This was mainly due to a 6.9% drop in robusta across the world, however.

Colombian exports are expected to have a slight increase year-over-year with domestic production jumping some 5.1%. Overall, the nation produced 14.0 million bags this crop year compared to 13.3 million in 2014-15.

Global exports of Colombian milds (an Arabica category that includes production from a few countries other than Colombia) were up 1.1% in 2015-16, rising from 13.5 million bags in 2014-15 to 13.6 million bags this year. Arabicas of all types were also up, shipping 71.0 million bags this year compared to 68.8 million. “Exports of the three Arabica groups all increased year on year,” stated the ICO in its report.