HÀ NỘI — Coffee exports reached a new record of US$4.7 billion in the first five months of this year, driven by surges in shipments to major markets including the EU and the US, the latest updates from the General Department of Customs showed.

In May alone, exports totalled nearly 149,000 tonnes, worth $860 million, an increase of 60.5 per cent in volume and nearly 2.2 times in value year-on-year.

Although export volume dropped slightly by 0.6 per cent in January to May, export value spiked by 62.3 per cent on record high export prices. The export prices averaged $5,709 per tonne, up 63.2 per cent.

The EU remained the largest coffee export market of Việt Nam, importing more than 367,000 tonnes worth $2 billion, a rise of 10.2 per cent in volume and 81.9 per cent in value.

Exports to the US also increased sharply, by 6.3 per cent in volume to 54,310 tonnes and 72.4 per cent in value to $299 million.

Exports to emerging markets also soared drastically with shipments to Algeria doubling and to Mexico by 39 times and South Africa by 17 times.

Challenges ahead

Despite impressive growth, Việt Nam’s coffee exports are facing with challenges, especially risks from global policy uncertainties and downward trend of global prices.

Analysts warned that global coffee prices are trending to drop due to rising supply from major producers, Robusta futures in London closed at $4,409 per tonne on June 11, down 15.6 per cent from the previous month.

Arabica on the New York exchange also dropped by 8.4 per cent.

In the domestic market, coffee prices in the Central Highlands have fallen to their lowest level since November, at around VNĐ112,000 per kg, down 12 per cent.

According to the Import -Export Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the price drop comes as Brazil and Indonesia are entering new harvest seasons. Brazil’s coffee crop is expected to increase by 0.5 per cent to 65 million bags in 2025-26 harvest season while Việt Nam’s output is forecast to increase by 6.9 per cent to 31 million bags, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

However, import-export department said that Việt Nam’s coffee export outlook remains optimistic, projecting the full-year export value at $7 billion.

Việt Nam earned $5.4 billion from exporting coffee in 2024. — VNS