ASIA COFFEE-Sluggish trade in Vietnam ahead of new crop season

By Phuong Nguyen and Mas Alina Arifin

HANOI, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Coffee trading continued on a sluggish note this week in Vietnam due to a shortage of beans and soft demand as traders awaited the new crop season that officially begins next month, traders said on Thursday.

In the Central Highlands, Vietnam's largest coffee-growing region, farmers sold beans COFVN-DAK at 115,000-117,000 dong ($4.36-$4.44) per kg, compared with last week's 114,500-116,800 dong.

"Both demand and supply are thin at the moment," said a trader based in the Central Highlands. "Edging close to the new crop season, traders tend to wait for new beans."

Another trader said some farmers had started offering beans from the upcoming harvest, however the volume was limited.

Robusta coffee LRCc2 settled down $331, or 7%, at $4,450 a metric ton on Wednesday.

In Indonesia, Sumatra robusta coffee beans were offered at $40-45 discount to the November and December contract, compared to 0 discount last week, a trader said, due to declining prices at the London terminal.

"Coffee price is not stable. Some trading houses have hedged on the terminal, allowing them to sell at lower prices," the trader said.

Another trader quoted a $50 premium to the November contract, compared with a $100 discount last week.

A coffee farmer in Lampung said the current heavy rainfall in the growing area may have caused many baby cherries to fall off.

($1 = 26,373.0000 dong)