Poor quality of coffee pulls down the market value
Kenya’s coffee has shed 4.7 per cent of its value in seven months to April as low prices at the premier New York Coffee Exchange and poor quality of local beans rolled back the gains of the previous period. PHOTO | FILE
What you need to know:
Kenya’s coffee has shed 4.7 per cent of its value in seven months to April as low prices at the premier New York Coffee Exchange and poor quality of local beans rolled back the gains of the previous period.
Kenya’s coffee has shed 4.7 per cent of its value in seven months to April as low prices at the premier New York Coffee Exchange and poor quality of local beans rolled back the gains of the previous period.
Latest data from the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE) indicate the crop earned the country Sh10.1 billion between October and April this year compared to Sh10.6 billion fetched in the previous comparable period.
The volumes of coffee sold through the auction increased to 24.3 tonnes compared with 23.8 tonnes last year.
“This drop is largely attributable to lower prices at the New York Coffee Exchange, which is the global benchmark for coffee prices,” said NCE chief executive officer Daniel Mbithi.
Kenya exports nearly 95 per cent of its coffee, making it vulnerable to low international prices.
On the global market, the commodity is now trading at 126.35 cents per pound, having gained 1.69 per cent.
On average, coffee started the season at the NCE at Sh15,655 per 50 kilogramme bag, rising to a peak of Sh24,038 for the same quantity in March. However, in the recent auction held last week, the price had dropped to Sh16,887. The NCE, however, is hopeful of a recovery both at home and globally.
PAYE Tax Calculator
Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
