Global coffee consumption rose by 1.7 per cent to an estimated 137.9 million bags in the 2011 calendar year, International Coffee Organisation (ICO) said.

Worldwide consumption of the brew stood at 135.6 million bags (of 60 kg each) in the 2010 calendar year.

“The total for calendar year 2011 is provisionally estimated at 137.9 million bags, an increase of 1.7 per cent in relation to the previous year,” ICO said in its report.

Global demand continues to show signs of buoyancy on the back of increased domestic consumption both in exporting countries and in emerging markets, it added.

However, there has been a decline in consumption in some countries, ICO said.

“...data for some important markets show significant decreases. This is the case in some traditional markets in southern Europe, such as Spain (—2.6 per cent) and Italy (—1.8 per cent), which have been affected by combination of higher retail prices and macroeconomic turbulence,” it added.

Substantial falls have also been recorded in a number of emerging markets, such as Korea (—17.1 per cent), Algeria (—11.5 per cent) and Ukraine (—10.8 per cent), showing their sensitivity to high prices, ICO pointed out.

According to market analysts, the rise in consumption globally can be judged with the considerable increase in the export volumes and earnings from coffee.

The value of total exports in calendar year 2011 is forecast at $23.5 billion for a total volume of 102.4 million bags of 60 kg each against $16.7 billion for a volume of 96.8 million bags in 2010, according to ICO data.

According to Coffee Board of India, the total global annual trade is valued at around $120 billion.

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