Robusta harvest advances in the main producer regions of Brazil

Robusta harvest advances in the main producer regions, reports CEPEA – the Center for Advanced Studies on Applied Economics of the University of São Paulo. Regarding the output, the main Brazilian producers of robusta coffee – Espírito Santo and Rondônia – were both hindered by the weather.

In Espírito Santo, the drought in 2014 and early 2015 might reduce the output. In Rondônia, the rain since the beginning of May harmed the harvest and the grain quality.

But, even with the availability in Brazilian market, robusta trades were slow, with producers waiting for better prices to restart trading.

In the partial of May, the CEPEA/ESALQ Index for Robusta coffee type 6, screen 13 above (at Espírito Santo – no freight included), dropped 1.69%, closing at 289.23 BRL (96.54 dollars) per 60-kilo bag on May 15.

For arabica, the harvest had just started in some regions surveyed by Cepea in the first fortnight of May. The CEPEA/ESALQ Index for type 6, hard cup or better (including freight to São Paulo city) decreased 1.63% in early May, closing at 428.58 BRL (143.05 dollars) per 60-kilo bag on May 15.