Banana monthly review: December 2023

Demand maintained its traditional slowdown in the run-up to the festive period. The East European markets continued to suffer disruption by the hauliers’ strikes which began in November, and by the arrival of the first cold spells. Despite this, the overall consumption level remained decent, thanks to a lean competing fruits supply. In addition, the banana supply remained moderate for the season, enabling the markets to maintain a degree of balance. After the October-November peak, Colombian shipments fell and Ecuadorian volumes remained near average for the season, while Costa Rican volumes held up at below-average levels. The French West Indies embarked on their fall, with slightly below-average volumes. Only the African supply continued to soar, at levels 8 % above average. Because of the slowdown in demand, some stocks formed and green banana prices dropped slightly at the end of the month, remaining lower than the 2022 levels. In Spain, the market crisis continued because of the big Canaries supply surplus, in spite of some volumes being discarded at the production stage. Prices continued to drop, reaching historically low levels for the season.