Monthly Publication

The year 2017 was a less exciting year; where the price of pepper continues to fall until it reaches a very low level. This was because pepper production in 2017 increased sharply, especially pepper production in Viet Nam, India and Brazil. The production of pepper in Sri Lanka also has a significant increase.

In 2017, average pepper price decreased by around 40%. Price index of black pepper and white pepper decreased by 41 points and 46 points respectively. Correspondingly, the composite price of black pepper decreased to US$ 4,200 per Mt in December 2017, from US$ 7,300 per Mt in December 2016. The composite price for white pepper in December 2017 was US$ 5,900 per Mt, decreased from USD 10,600 per Mt in December 2016. Price in December 2017 was the lowest received during the last three years. The IPC price index and composite price of black and white pepper are shown in Table 1 and 2 respectively.

Table 1. IPC Price Index (Base Year: Average 2011 - 2015)

Table 2. Nominal Composite Price of Black and White Pepper (US$/Mt)

In New York, spot price of black and white pepper decreased to the level US$ 4,780 and US$ 7,500 per Mt respectively in December 2017 from US$ 7,850 and US$ 11,700 per Mt respectively in December 2016. When compared to the highest achieved in July 2015, the price has decreased sharply by more than 55%.

During the 45th IPC Session held in November 2017 in Kandy, Sri Lanka, the IPC member countries reported provisional figures on production, export, import and domestic consumption in their respective countries during the years from 2016 to 2018. Based on these reports it was resulted total production and export of pepper in 2017 at around 460,000 Mt and 364,000 Mt respectively.

Based on recent development and information received from trade and official sources in producing countries and other international agencies such as ITC as well as assessment made by the IPC, it is estimated that global production of pepper in 2017 would be around 488,500 Mt, which is 14% higher than production achieved in the previous year (2016) at the level of 428,500 Mt. Black pepper production increased by 14% and white pepper by 12%. Except Indonesia and China, production of pepper in most producing countries increased, particularly in Viet Nam and Brazil. Production in India and Sri Lanka also increased.

Export of pepper from producing countries in 2017, excluding the raw materials used for manufacturing pepper oil and oleoresin for export, is re-estimated to around 389,000 Mt from earlier estimate of 364,000 Mt. When compared to export of 321,500 Mt in 2016, export in 2017 increased by 21%, mainly due to significant increase of exports from Viet Nam and Brazil. Sri Lanka and Malaysia also increased at lower rates while India and Indonesia reported that export is estimated to decrease. Total export of black pepper increased by 24% and white pepper increased by 18%. The significant increase in export was the main reason for significant decrease of price during the year.

Although pepper prices went down further in 2017, Viet Nam and Brazil were relatively more fortunate since export from these two countries increased significantly. During 2017, Viet Nam is estimated to have exported 214,000 Mt of pepper valued at US$ US$1.12 billion, holding around 55% of global pepper market. In terms of quantity, export from Viet Nam increased by 19%, but in value decreased by 21%. The significant increase of export was possible because production in 2917 increased. Viet Nam also imported around 30,000 Mt in 2017 for re-export.

In 2017 Export of Brazil was nearly 60,000 Mt worth US$ 277 million. The export increased by 94% in quantity and 12% in value. Except India and Indonesia, export from other producing countries is estimated to have increased in 2017.

According to trade statistics published by ITC, export (including re-export) of pepper from India in 2016 was 23,860 Mt valued at US$ 188 million. India also imported significant quantity for industrial use of oil and oleoresin. Total import in 2016 was 23,500 Mt. In 2017 domestic demand continued to increase therefore total import of pepper into India is estimated to increase further, while export decreased. Up to September 2017 India has imported 21,700 Mt of pepper as against 17,700 Mt over the same period last year which recorded an increase of 23%. In terms of export however, it has decreased by 24% from 17,800 Mt in January- September 2016 to 13,500 Mt in the first nine months 2017. Up to December 2017 a volume of 18,000 Mt is estimated to have recorded as export and 29,000 Mt as import.

In Indonesia, production and export of pepper in Lampung was reported to have decrease while in Bangka production and export was reported more or less the same as previous year. Production at other source however, such as in Kalimantan and Sulawesi has shown an increasing trend. Hence, total production in 2017 is estimated to be more or less the same as last year. Internal demand was also reported to have increased resulting export decreased in 2017. Export of black pepper is estimated to decrease, following a continuous decrease of black pepper production in Lampung. While export of white pepper is estimated to increase this year, since production of white pepper in new producing areas increased. During January-August 2017, Indonesia exported 27,100 Mt of pepper. Up to December 2017 a volume of 48,000 Mt is estimated to have been shipped from Indonesia. The following table illustrates the detail.

Table 3: Production and export of pepper by main producing countries 2016-2017

Table 4. Brazil: Export and Import of Pepper in Mt

Table 5. India: Export and Import of Pepper in Mt

Table 6. Indonesia: Export and Import of Pepper in Mt

Table 7. Malaysia: Export and Import of Pepper in Mt

Table 8. Viet Nam: Export of Pepper in Mt