World coffee prices reversed course and rose sharply after three weeks of sell-offs.
At the close of trading on May 19th, the price of robusta coffee futures for July 2026 delivery on the London exchange reversed its trend, rising 1.18% (US$39/ton) from the previous session to US$3,345/ton. The September 2026 contract increased 1.04% (US$33/ton), reaching US$3,208/ton. This was a significant reversal after a prolonged period of sharp decline.
On the New York Stock Exchange, the price of Arabica coffee for July 2026 delivery rose more sharply, by 2.25% (5.95 US cents/pound), to 270.15 US cents/pound. The September 2026 contract increased by 2.1% (5.4 US cents/pound), reaching 262.15 US cents/pound. The increase in Arabica was almost double that of Robusta in the same session.
According to Reuters and Barchart, coffee prices erased early losses and turned higher, as a three-week sell-off pushed prices into strongly oversold territory, triggering technical buying and short-covering by investment funds. This was the main driving force behind the rebound in coffee prices from their lows.
Global coffee inventories have fallen sharply – a factor supporting prices.
Coffee inventories on the ICE exchange have been trending downward over the past two months, providing positive support for world coffee prices. Robusta coffee inventories on the ICE exchange have fallen to their lowest level in two years – just 3,631 lots at the end of last week. This is a very low inventory level, reflecting continued high global demand for robusta.
Arabica coffee inventories on the ICE exchange also fell to their lowest level in about 2.75 months, to 458,735 bags as of May 19th. The simultaneous decline in both types of inventories reflects that consumer demand remains stable despite short-term price fluctuations.
However, traders say the prospect of a bumper crop in Brazil this year is putting long-term downward pressure on the market. Earlier this week, Rabobank forecast Brazil's 2026-2027 coffee crop to reach 73.3 million 60kg bags – potentially one of the largest ever recorded in Brazil. This forecast is contributing to increased selling pressure as the market reassesses the balance between current scarce inventories and abundant future supply.
Coffee prices in the Central Highlands today, May 20th, increased by 800 VND/kg across the board.
According to a survey conducted at 3:00 PM on May 20th, coffee prices in the Central Highlands region uniformly increased by 800 VND/kg compared to the previous day. The current price range for coffee is between 85,600 and 86,300 VND/kg. This uniform increase across all provinces indicates that the domestic market is positively reflecting the reversal in global trends.
Specifically, the purchase price of coffee in the Dak Nong region (formerly - now merged into Lam Dong according to the resolution on administrative unit rearrangement) increased to 86,300 VND/kg, continuing to be the highest price in the Central Highlands. Dak Lak and Gia Lai both increased to 86,100 VND/kg - 200 VND/kg lower than the former Dak Nong region. The former Lam Dong region stood at 85,600 VND/kg, the lowest coffee price in the Central Highlands.
A quick comparison of regions: the former Dak Nong region has the highest price at 86,300 VND/kg, 700 VND/kg higher than the former Lam Dong region (the lowest). Dak Lak and Gia Lai have the same average price of 86,100 VND/kg. The difference between the highest and lowest prices in the Central Highlands is 700 VND/kg – a narrow gap, reflecting a consensus in market price trends. Although Dak Nong and Lam Dong have been administratively merged, traditional coffee-growing regions are still separated in trading to facilitate price tracking according to the specific characteristics of each region.
Coffee price list today, May 20, 2026, in the Central Highlands.
| Market | Average price (VND/kg) | Changes compared to yesterday |
|---|---|---|
| Dak Lak | 86,100 | +800 |
| Lam Dong (old region)* | 85,600 | +800 |
| Gia Lai | 86,100 | +800 |
| Dak Nong (old region)* | 86,300 | +800 |
*Note: According to the resolution on administrative unit reorganization, Dak Nong province has merged into Lam Dong province. The price list still retains the traditional regional divisions.
Vietnam leads the global robusta coffee exports.
The International Coffee Organization (ICO), in its monthly report released on April 19, said global green coffee exports in March rose slightly by 0.8% year-on-year, reaching 11.7 million 60-kg bags. The increase in exports of robusta and arabica from Central America offset the decline in exports from Brazil and Colombia.
According to the ICO, global robusta coffee exports in March increased by 24% year-on-year, reaching a record 5.52 million bags. Vietnam was the leading producer with an export increase of 30.3% – higher than the global average. This figure further confirms Vietnam's leading position in the world robusta coffee industry.
Other arabica coffee varieties, including arabica from Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, recorded a slight increase of 0.9% to 2.59 million bags. However, exports of wet-processed arabica coffee from Colombia decreased by 33.8% to 0.88 million bags due to domestic supply difficulties. Exports of dry-processed arabica coffee from Brazil decreased by 16.8% to 2.71 million bags.
Source: https://baodanang.vn/gia-ca-phe-hom-nay-20-5-2026-robusta-dao-chieu-tang-1-18-3337371.html
![[Photo] General Secretary and President To Lam presides over a meeting on preparations for the review of one year of operation of the three-tiered government system.](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/1200x675/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2026/06/02/1780391821195_a1-bnd-4595-9717-jpg.webp)
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