São Paulo – Brazilian coffee exports had a 25% drop in volume in August. In a report released this Monday (13), the Brazilian Coffee Exporters Council (Cecafé) informed total shipments of the product totaled 2.67 million 60-kg bags in the month. There was a 1.6% contraction in foreign exchange income, from USD 427.5 million to USD 420.5 million.
In the calendar year, the performance is similar, with a 1.8% decrease compared to the same period of 2020, dropping to 26.303 million bags. On the other hand, the export revenue grew 5.8%, totaling USD 3.618 billion in the first eight months of 2021.
From January to August, the Arab countries bought 1.11 million bags of coffee from Brazil. The figure also represents a 5.8% reduction. In foreign exchange income, trade between Brazil and the bloc generated USD 122.6 million.
For the president of Cecafé, Nicolas Rueda, the decline reflects the continuation of logistical bottlenecks in maritime transport, a structural problem beyond the borders of Brazil and the product. “This serious operational crisis has generated soaring shipping costs, constant cancellations of bookings, difficulties for new bookings, and disputes for containers and places on the ships,” stated Rueda in a note.
Cecafé surveyed exporters who mentioned obstacles that impeded Brazil from exporting about 3.5 million bags from May to August 2021. The president of Cecafé believes the turnover was driven by the upturn in countries with high vaccination rates, such as the United States and Europe. As a result, these markets purchased more products and increased demand for ships, mainly from Asia.
Translated by Elúsio Brasileiro
