Coffee prices plunge as Oriente Moderno port backs up

The price of Tierra Verde coffee at the federal exchange fell 16 percent in the past ten days, from 2.84 florins per kilogram to 2.39 florins. The decline follows a shipping bottleneck at the port terminal in Nueva Singapur, Oriente Moderno's capital, where container vessels are waiting an average of eight days longer than usual to dock and load. As shipments back up, exporters have begun cutting prices to move inventory.

For smallholder farmers in Tierra Verde, the margin between profitability and loss is thin. At 2.39 florins per kilogram, a farmer producing 400 kilograms per season—typical for a small cooperative plot—earns 956 florins gross. After costs for labor, fertilizer, and transport to the regional exchange, most smallholders net 600 to 700 florins per season. At the price from ten days ago, the same farmer would have netted 850 to 950 florins.

The port backlog in Nueva Singapur is not new. Container vessels have been queuing for dock space since late May, when a labor dispute at the terminal delayed loading operations for five days. Though the dispute was resolved, the backlog has persisted. Governor Daniel Park's office in Nueva Singapur has not released a timeline for clearing the queue.