Pepper and coffee farmers expect better prices

Last weekend, coffee prices on the London (UK) exchange regained the $5,000/ton mark, after falling sharply due to the reciprocal tax announced by the US earlier. In the Central Highlands, coffee prices also increased for three consecutive days, by a total of VND7,000 - 8,000/kg, to an average of VND125,000/kg. Similarly, pepper prices also increased by VND8,000 compared to the beginning of the week, to VND156,000/kg.

Mr. Tran Dinh Trong, Director of Eatu Agricultural and Fair Service Cooperative (Buon Ma Thuot City, Dak Lak), said: Pepper and coffee prices fell sharply at the beginning of this month due to information that the US would impose reciprocal tariffs. But over the past few weekends, they have increased again; partly because the US has postponed tariffs and another equally important factor is that those who are still holding coffee up to now all have good financial potential. If the price is not at the expected level, they will not sell or only sell in small amounts, so sooner or later it will increase again. In fact, the amount of goods left in the people's hands is not much, only about 20 - 30%, while the next harvest will not be until early November 2025. In addition, before harvesting coffee, people in the Central Highlands are also preparing for the durian season.

Agreeing with the above viewpoint, Mr. Nguyen Dac Dat, Director of Nga Thanh Trading Company Limited - a local agricultural product purchasing enterprise in Krong No District (Dak Nong), said: Currently, the Central Highlands agricultural product market has changed a lot compared to before. In the past, when prices "fell", there was often a massive sell-off, but recently the price dropped by tens of thousands of dong, farmers still did not sell. Recently, the price increased again but the market continued to "freeze" because it was not equal to the average price last month of 130,000 VND/kg. The amount of goods in the people and agents is about 30 - 40% of the total output. Export enterprises also basically have enough goods for signed contracts. Due to good information and finances, many farmers are no longer panicking like before. Agents and intermediary enterprises have gone through many storms, so they are much more cautious.

"Over the past time, we have built a brand in the international market, so the demand for Vietnamese goods is very high. Meanwhile, farmers have many good sources of income from many other agricultural products such as durian and pepper; these factors create the ability to "resist" price fluctuations in recent times," said Mr. Nguyen Dac Dat.

Mr. Do Ha Nam, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Intimex Group, affirmed: Coffee and pepper products are being affected by the factor of supply being lower than demand. For coffee, Vietnam is the second largest supplier in the world and pepper is the first, so the impact of reciprocal taxes is not much. Besides the US market, we have many other important markets, especially the EU and emerging markets in Asia such as China, Korea, ASEAN, etc. The law of supply and demand will help keep coffee and pepper prices high.

"I think that Vietnam has responded very positively in a constructive and cooperative spirit to the US's reciprocal tax issue. This will help us expect a more reasonable tax rate at the negotiating table. Besides, these are also typical tropical products that the US does not have the ability to produce or have a competitive advantage. On the other hand, these are essential products for many Americans, so there is a possibility that there will be tax exemptions," said Mr. Do Ha Nam.

Vietnam is an important link in the international supply chain.

That is the assessment of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham) in the White Book 2025 released last weekend. The leader of this organization emphasized: "It is Vietnam's stability, growth potential and ability to adapt quickly that has attracted increasing attention from the European business community."

According to the White Book, the highlight is the positive results after 5 years of implementing the Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). Notably, in 2024, two-way trade turnover increased by 16%, reaching a record of 68 billion USD. In the first 2 months of 2025 alone, the EU became Vietnam's second largest export market, with turnover reaching 8.8 billion USD, up 13.3% over the same period last year. Similarly, in terms of direct investment from Europe as of September 2024, there were 2,625 projects with a total registered capital of nearly 30 billion USD, accounting for 6.08% of total FDI in Vietnam. The EU is the 6th largest foreign investor in Vietnam. In addition, the EuroCham Business Climate Index (BCI) reached 61.8 points - the highest level since the beginning of 2022. Thanks to that, more than 70% of investors plan to expand their operations in the near future and up to 3/4 of European enterprises are ready to introduce Vietnam as an investment destination.

The White Paper 2025 serves as a practical tool for the EU and Vietnam to review bottlenecks, seize opportunities and coordinate actions based on the principle of "harmonized benefits and shared risks" with the aim of maintaining growth momentum and maintaining confidence in an unpredictable period.

Speaking at the launch of the White Book 2025, Mr. Bruno Jaspaert, Chairman of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam, emphasized: Vietnam is holding many advantages that not every country has. These are its geostrategic location, large reserves of rare earth, abundant natural resources, abundant labor force and a Government that always accompanies businesses on every development journey. The ability to adapt, attract investment and maintain growth momentum will be key factors shaping Vietnam's long-term future. The revolution of streamlining the apparatus to increase management efficiency and simplify administrative procedures is the "key" to expanding growth space. The next 7 years will be a key period for Vietnam to accelerate infrastructure development and strengthen management mechanisms to achieve growth targets.