Ethiopia's coffee export earnings rise 15 per cent to $878.5 million
First-quarter receipts exceeded those of the same period last year, with China now the third-largest destination for Ethiopian coffee.
Ethiopia earned $878.5 million from coffee exports in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, an increase of 15 per cent on the corresponding period of the previous year, according to the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority (ECTA).
The country shipped more than 131,000 tonnes of coffee during the quarter. The Authority described the performance as solid, although slightly below its projections.
Exports to China generated more than $100 million from over 15,000 tonnes, making China the third-largest destination for Ethiopian coffee after Saudi Arabia and Germany.
Ethiopia, widely regarded as the birthplace of Arabica coffee, is one of Africa's leading producers and exporters of the crop. Coffee remains among the country's most important sources of foreign exchange, and the growth in Asian demand is being closely watched by policymakers seeking to diversify export markets.