The price of coffee rose 9.3% between August and September 2025, reaching $3.24 per pound — the highest level since May — according to the latest report from the International Coffee Organization (ICO). The figure marks the first time in three months that coffee prices have returned to the $3 threshold.
Despite this rise, September’s price was still $0.10 below the $3.34 recorded in May. The ICO noted that the current rate is 25.4% higher than in September 2024, when the 12-month moving average stood at $3.06 per pound.
Colombian milds and other mild coffees saw gains of 10.1% and 9.3%, averaging $4.03 and $4.00 per pound, while Brazilian coffee prices rose 11.3% in recent months to $3.74 per pound.
In El Salvador, the Central Reserve Bank (BCR) reported improved export performance for the first eight months of 2025. The country exported $149.5 million in coffee, totaling 512,400 quintals at an average price of $292 per quintal — 4.5% higher than the $227.4 recorded during the same period in 2024.
The ICO attributed the global price hike to growing uncertainty over U.S. coffee supply, as domestic reserves continue to deplete amid trade tariffs introduced by the Trump administration. “Coffee, being a commodity that cannot be produced at sufficient scale in the United States to meet internal demand, has not yet seen its tariffs revised or revoked,” the organization stated.
Prices also climbed due to reduced certified stock levels and temporary market corrections linked to new U.S. contract requirements. Still, optimism has emerged from renewed trade discussions between the U.S. and Brazil, alongside a 25-basis-point interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve, which could ease market pressures in the months ahead.