Latest news with #SEBbank
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Coffee drinkers brace for record prices as tariffs hit
Americans must brace for record high coffee prices as Donald Trump's tariffs combine with soaring costs to punish consumers, analysts have warned. Retail coffee prices in the US are expected to surge by nearly a third this year to an all-time high as businesses scramble to adjust to higher import charges and record high commodity prices, according to Carlos Mera, head of agricultural commodities at Rabobank. Mr Mera said: 'I think for a large packet of coffee, we might see retail price rises of around 30pc in the 2025 calendar year.' TJ Semanchin, owner of Wonderstate Coffee, a wholesale roasters which also owns a series of coffee shops in Wisconsin, said: 'We are in uncharted territory as an industry. The tariffs could not be coming at a worse moment in terms of impact on our prices.' Mr Trump shocked coffee importers by imposing sweeping 'reciprocal' tariffs on America's trading partners on April 2, announcing massive charges on many key coffee exporters such as Vietnam, where he imposed a 46pc tariff. Although he scrapped these 'reciprocal' charges on Wednesday this week, most exporting nations are now subject to a 10pc blanket tariff, which will effectively add a 10th to the import price of coffee. This comes on top of an enormous surge in the commodity price of wholesale coffee beans. The price of Arabica beans, America's main coffee import, has soared to an unprecedented all-time record high of more than $4 (£3) per pound in February. It has since dropped to $3.56 but this is still up nearly 60pc year-on-year and is the highest price recorded for the beans at any point in history before 2025. This followed years of bad harvests in Brazil and Vietnam and major shipping disruptions due to Houthi rebel attacks on ships travelling through the Red Sea. Mr Semanchin said: 'Coffee has never been more expensive, ever. When you tack on a percentage tax on what is already a very high price, that's a multiplying effect. 'At $2 per pound, a 10pc tariff is 20 cents per pound. At a $4 market price, that tariff is now 40 cents.' Mr Semanchin already raised his prices by 15pc to 20pc in March to account for the higher commodity prices. Now, he thinks he will have to charge an extra $1 for every $15 bag of wholesale coffee that he sells. Mr Trump's about-turn on 'reciprocal' tariffs offers no relief for the US coffee sector, Mr Semanchin added. He said: 'Trump's announcement has almost no impact on the tariffs we were facing. The situation for importing for companies like ours remains dire.' Altogether, Mr Semanchin estimated tariffs will cost his business an additional $300,000 per year. America imports almost all of its coffee apart from around 1pc which is grown in Hawaii. This is because it does not have the appropriate climate to grow its own and means US coffee sellers have no option but to keep importing. Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB bank, said: 'These tariffs really do drive up the prices of goods and coffee is going to be one of them.' Thijs Geijer, food and agriculture economist at ING bank, said US consumer coffee prices are already soaring at nearly three times the average rate of inflation. US consumer price index (CPI) data shows coffee retailer prices in March were up by 6.7pc year-on-year, far higher than the overall 2.4pc CPI rate. Mr Geijer said: 'Within the shopping basket of an average consumer, coffee and also chocolate are really the ones that stand out in terms of year on year price increases.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Sign in to access your portfolio
Telegraph
12-04-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Coffee drinkers brace for record prices as tariffs hit
Americans must brace for record-high coffee prices as Donald Trump's tariffs combine with soaring costs to punish consumers, analysts have warned. Retail coffee prices in the US are expected to surge by nearly a third this year to an all-time high as businesses scramble to adjust to higher import charges and record high commodity prices, according to Carlos Mera, head of agricultural commodities at Rabobank. Mr Mera said: 'I think for a large packet of coffee, we might see retail price rises of around 30pc in the 2025 calendar year.' TJ Semanchin, owner of Wonderstate Coffee, a wholesale roasters which also owns a series of coffee shops in Wisconsin, said: 'We are in uncharted territory as an industry. The tariffs could not be coming at a worse moment in terms of impact on our prices.' Mr Trump shocked coffee importers by imposing sweeping 'reciprocal' tariffs on America's trading partners on April 2, announcing massive charges on many key coffee exporters such as Vietnam, where he imposed a 46pc tariff. Although he scrapped these 'reciprocal' charges on Wednesday this week, most exporting nations are now subject to a 10pc blanket tariff, which will effectively add a 10th to the import price of coffee. This comes on top of an enormous surge in the commodity price of wholesale coffee beans. The price of Arabica beans, America's main coffee import, has soared to an unprecedented all-time record high of more than $4 (£3) per pound in February. It has since dropped to $3.56 but this is still up nearly 60pc year-on-year and is the highest price recorded for the beans at any point in history before 2025. This followed years of bad harvests in Brazil and Vietnam and major shipping disruptions due to Houthi rebel attacks on ships travelling through the Red Sea. Mr Semanchin said: 'Coffee has never been more expensive, ever. When you tack on a percentage tax on what is already a very high price, that's a multiplying effect. 'At $2 per pound, a 10pc tariff is 20 cents per pound. At a $4 market price, that tariff is now 40 cents.' Mr Semanchin already raised his prices by 15pc to 20pc in March to account for the higher commodity prices. Now, he thinks he will have to charge an extra $1 for every $15 bag of wholesale coffee that he sells. Mr Trump's about-turn on 'reciprocal' tariffs offers no relief for the US coffee sector, Mr Semanchin added. He said: 'Trump's announcement has almost no impact on the tariffs we were facing. The situation for importing for companies like ours remains dire.' Altogether, Mr Semanchin estimated tariffs will cost his business an additional $300,000 per year. America imports almost all of its coffee apart from around 1pc which is grown in Hawaii. This is because it does not have the appropriate climate to grow its own and means US coffee sellers have no option but to keep importing. Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB bank, said: 'These tariffs really do drive up the prices of goods and coffee is going to be one of them.' Thijs Geijer, food and agriculture economist at ING bank, said US consumer coffee prices are already soaring at nearly three times the average rate of inflation. US consumer price index (CPI) data shows coffee retailer prices in March were up by 6.7pc year-on-year, far higher than the overall 2.4pc CPI rate. Mr Geijer said: 'Within the shopping basket of an average consumer, coffee and also chocolate are really the ones that stand out in terms of year on year price increases.'
Local Sweden
09-04-2025
- Business
- Local Sweden
What can foreigners in Sweden expect from the economy in 2025?
This week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with the economist Américo Fernández from SEB bank. Advertisement With the Swedish economy still in a difficult place, The Local's Becky Waterton asks SEB economist Américo Fernández what the outlook is like for the country as a whole, and for households in Sweden, in the coming months and beyond. What do recent Swedish currency gains mean for foreigners in Sweden? What's useful for immigrants to think about when saving for pensions? How should couples with unequal incomes think about their savings in Sweden? And is now a good time to invest in a summer house in Sweden? Membership+ subscribers can listen to the full conversation in the latest episode of Sweden in Focus Extra, out April 9th. READ ALSO: Get Membership+ to listen to all The Local's podcasts Sweden in Focus Extra is a podcast for The Local's Membership+ subscribers. Sign up to Membership+ now and get early, ad-free access to a full-length episode of the Sweden in Focus podcast every weekend, as well as Sweden in Focus Extra every Wednesday. Please visit the link that applies to you and get a 40% discount on Membership+ Read more about Membership+ in our help centre. Already have Membership+ but not receiving all the episodes? Go to the podcast tab on your account page to activate your subscription on a podcast platform. If you prefer to listen on the site, you can find all episodes at the bottom of our podcast page.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Households face jump in energy bills as green power struggles
Households face an increase in their energy bills as power generation from renewable sources such as wind farms proves unreliable, analysts have warned. European natural gas prices soared to their highest level in two years on Monday as the Continent scrambles to refill its rapidly depleting reserves. Benchmark gas futures have climbed for four weeks in a row and hit €58.75 (£49.01) per megawatt-hour on Monday, roughly double the levels seen at the start of last year and the highest since February 2023, when energy markets were still reeling from Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Bjarne Schieldrop, an analyst at SEB bank, blamed a cold winter, shortfalls in green power and the ongoing loss of Russian gas supplies in the wake of the war in Ukraine. Mr Schieldrop said: 'There was less hydroelectric power than expected, less wind than expected, and slightly higher demand. 'I don't think anyone thinks we will run out, but we will have to pay a painful price.' If the latest rise in gas prices was maintained, it could add around 20pc to household gas bills, Mr Schieldrop said. However, analysts expect prices will fall because global supply is strong. Mr Schieldrop expects European natural gas prices will be about 20pc higher this year than last, equivalent to a rise in consumer gas bills of around 7pc. Europe's gas stores are less than half full, a first for this time of year since 2022 when the war in Ukraine began. The numbers are a clear warning sign that Europe is still struggling to move on from its heavy dependence on Russian gas, Mr Schieldrop warned. 'All of this comes back to Russia and the Ukraine war. The EU relied on Russia for 40pc of its gas. That is where this whole problem stems from,' he said. Europe still buys some gas from Russia but it has dramatically reduced its reliance, slashing the share of Russian pipeline gas in EU imports from 40pc to 8pc between 2021 and 2023. The Continent has instead tried to both reduce its gas usages and increase its liquefied natural gas imports, which can be stored, from elsewhere. Although the UK bought a much smaller share of its gas from Russia than other European countries before the war, it is heavily dependent on gas for heating and was hit hard by the surge in the global commodity price in 2022. Tom Edwards, analyst at Cornwall Insight, said: 'I don't think there is a crisis of supply, but we are certainly going to have to pay for it. 'This is a short-term problem, because more supply will become available. But it is obviously not great for consumers.' The Energy Crisis Commission last year warned that the UK is 'dangerously unprepared' for another energy crisis because of its ongoing heavy reliance on gas. Jess Ralston, an analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said the UK must increase its renewable energy generation to reduce our dependence on foreign energy markets. Ms Ralston said: 'Building out more renewables to replace gas for electricity generation, insulating homes and transitioning away from gas boilers is how to shield households from this volatility.' Sign in to access your portfolio
