Rain To Lash Brazil's Coffee Regions This Week

SAO PAULO (Dow Jones)--Brazil's main coffee-producing regions should see heavy rain later this week, according to local weather service Somar Monday.

In Minas Gerais, Brazil's No. 1 coffee-growing state, daytime temperatures of 20-25 degrees Celsius are expected through Wednesday, while nighttime temperatures will range from 9-12 degrees Celsius.

Several days of rain are expected to begin later in the week. The coffee-growing towns of Guaxupe, Poco de Caldas, and Varginha will see six millimeters of rain Friday and up to 12 millimeters through Sunday, Somar said.

Rodrigo Costa, coffee analyst and trader at Newedge, said that Brazil's weather is something to be worried about. "Cold masses are arriving in the south of the country, with no apparent threat of frost for the coffee-belt. But rains are forecasted for the end of the month," he said.

This could provoke more problems with the quality of current crop, Costa added.

In Parana and Sao Paulo's arabica coffee regions, the weather is expected to follow the same pattern.

Daytime temperatures will reach 22-26 degrees Celsius, and nighttime temperatures will fall to 14-17 degrees Celsius. Light showers are expected by Wednesday followed by heavy rain on Thursday and Friday.

Parana's Londrina, should record up to 24 millimeters of rain on Thursday. Sao Paulo will see 10-20 millimeters of rain through the weekend.

Brazil is the world's No. 1 coffee producer and exporter.

*Source: The Wall Street Journal