* Indonesian beans on par with London; Vietnam at discounts
* Local roasters chase buys, other buyers want bargains
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, May 16 (Reuters) - Indonesian roasters chased robustas for nearby delivery this week but foreign trading houses were waiting for prices to fall, while a few cargoes of Vietnamese beans changed hands at discounts to London futures, dealers said on Friday.
The harvest has picked up in Indonesia's main growing island of Sumatra and could peak later this month, or in early June. The International Coffee Organization pegs Indonesia's coffee output at 11.67 million bags in the 2013/14 crop year, down from 13.04 million in 2012/13.
Sumatran grade 4, 80 defect beans were traded on par with London futures, unchanged from last week, but there were also offers at $10 below London's July contract
"Local roasters are quite aggressive because they believe we won't see much coffee by the end of the year. Supply will be tighter because we will have a smaller crop," an exporter in Java said.
"Other buyers just take it easy. They are waiting for prices to fall to $30 to $50 below London. But since supply is still limited at the moment, I don't think we can really bargain."
Demand from roasters helped Indonesian beans resist pressure from gains in London futures. July robustas
Futures and coffee differentials usually move in opposite directions.
Indonesia, the world's third-largest coffee producer, mainly grows robusta - a bitter-tasting variety used in instant coffee. Indonesia and Vietnam, which compete in the robusta market, together account for about 27 percent of global coffee output.
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"There's still a lot of coffee available in Vietnam. I am more concerned about the Indonesian coffee. I would think that Mayora is actively buying local beans now," said a dealer in Singapore, referring to Indonesian roaster PT Mayora Indah
"Vietnamese beans are still hovering around minus $65 to $75. I don't see many deals because everyone is playing hard to get. I last bought beans at minus $15 this week."
Vietnam's grade 2, 5 percent broken beans were offered and traded last week at $90 below London futures.
Traders in Vietnam, the world's second-largest producer, have estimated some 40 percent of the country's harvest remained at home, with half held by farmers and the rest in warehouses of exporters and several foreign trading companies.
WEEK AHEAD
Indonesian coffee premiums could stay at the current level next week, aided by purchases from roasters.
(Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
((lewa.pardomuan@thomsonreuters.com)(+65 68703834)(Reuters Messaging: lewa.pardomuan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
Keywords: COFFEE PHYSICALS/
