AsemconnectVietnam - On Friday, domestic pepper prices in Vietnam's Central Highlands remained unchanged at 147,000-149,000VND per kg compared to Yesterday, according to Kinhtedothi.

The Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association has just announced that in the first 15 days of July 2024, Vietnam exported 9,993 tonnes of pepper, valued at 56.5 million USD, which decreased sharply monthly.
The main export enterprises include Olam Vietnam: 1,272 tonnes, Phuc Sinh: 1,224 tonnes; Simexco Dak Lak: 839 tonnes, Nedspice Vietnam: 796 tonnes and Pearl: 649 tonnes.
Meanwhile, Vietnam imported 746 tonnes of pepper, valued at 4.5 million USD. Olam and KSS Vietnam are the two main importers, reaching 232 tonnes, accounting for 31.1%, and 75 tonnes, accounting for 10.1%, respectively. The main pepper importers are Indonesia: 438 tonnes, accounting for 58.7%, and Cambodia: 229 tonnes, accounting for 30.7%.
As Công thương (Industry and Trade) Magazine reported, some industry experts believe that the market does not have new motivation to push pepper prices up. However, the domestic pepper price has formed a new rate, which is difficult to decrease further compared to the current price.
In the short term, the pepper market is less energised, mainly because domestic coffee prices are rising again, causing capital flows to shift to coffee trading.
Hoàng Phước Bình, standing vice chairman of Chư Sê Pepper Association (Gia Lai Province), said the average production cost of pepper is currently fluctuating VNĐ60,000 - VNĐ70,000 per kilo due to higher material costs and other costs. Thus, the current selling price is more than double the production cost, helping pepper growers make a large profit. Therefore, many pepper growers are not in a hurry to sell their goods, unless they need the capital.
Currently, many pepper growers expect that the low supply at present will push pepper prices back up soon.
Many industry experts have predicted that pepper prices in the future may break the peak of VNĐ250,000 per kilo - the highest level of the pepper price cycle ten years ago.
According to the Vietnam Pepper Association, the current price level of Vietnamese pepper is still quite low compared to the price of pepper in other major producing countries. Therefore, the increase in Vietnamese pepper prices is still relatively large.
In addition, Việt Nam's pepper export to China in the second quarter of 2024 was lower than expectations. So, some businesses predict purchasing demand from China to gradually increase again from the third quarter of 2024 for the needs of the year-end festivals. This is expected to push pepper prices up in the last months of the year.
Following are domestic pepper prices on July 19, in the main pepper growing and consumption regions:

T.Huong
Source: Vitic