Broker absence hits Asian coffee trade<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (Reuters): The absence of a strong middleman in the
\nIndonesian coffee market is hampering trade flow and restricting
\nexports, traders said yesterday.<\/p>\n
The coffee merchants, mostly ethnic Chinese, are no longer
\nventuring into the hill country to source for coffee due to
\nrenewed tension in Indonesia where the Chinese are singled out
\nfor attack, they said.<\/p>\n
\"Most of the middleman are Chinese, by chopping the middleman
\nyou are slowing exports,\" one trader at a local house said.<\/p>\n
\"They don't dare to travel far up to the hills. This is
\nclogging the distribution line.\"<\/p>\n
Traders said an increase in security at the main trading
\ncenter of Bandar Lampung in Sumatra after a spate of looting, is
\nalso slowing the arrival of beans.<\/p>\n
\"They have to travel in armed convoys and this is slowing the
\nmovement,\" one trader said.<\/p>\n
Beans are still offered from Indonesia in small lots of about
\n50-100 tons but offers are not being made for full cargo sizes of
\n500-1,000 tons, traders said.<\/p>\n
The continued shortage of containers, they said, is another
\nfactor that is contributing to the reduced exports.<\/p>\n
They said about a quarter of Indonesia's annual production,
\nestimated at 330,000 tons, have been exported so far, but some
\nare skeptical if the full export potential could be achieved due
\nto the country's economic troubles.<\/p>\n
\"It's so chaotic out there right now. I think some of the
\nexports would be affected by all the things that are going on
\ndown there,\" another trader said.<\/p>\n
Indonesian traders said hundreds of people had gotten away
\nwith 15-20 tons of coffee beans per day during one weekend of
\nlooting in early July, plucking even unripe beans.<\/p>\n
Despite the supply hiccups, prices have not risen due to weak
\ndemand and casual buying interest as buyers are comfortable amid
\nnews of a healthy harvest from Brazil.<\/p>\n
\"There doesn't seem to be much demand at the moment. Buyers
\nare waiting for Brazil, which seems on track to give a huge
\nharvest,\" a trader said.<\/p>\n
In London on Tuesday, benchmark September ended at $1,554,
\ncompared with $1,544 a week ago.<\/p>\n
Indonesian supplies were offered at around $130\/$160 per ton
\nunder London levels, steady from a week ago. Vietnam benchmark
\ngrade 2, five percent black and broken beans were seen by the
\ntrade at $90\/$130 under, also unchanged.<\/p>\n
Traders said Vietnam is still offering limited volumes, even
\nthough its at the tail end of sales until beans from the next
\nharvest arrive in October.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/broker-absence-hits-asian-coffee-trade-1447893297",
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