Kenyan Tea price takes upward trend at Mombasa Auction

NAIROBI, Kenya - The prices of Kenyan tea have taken an upward rise at the weekly Mombasa auction.

This is the first time the commodity beverage continues to show a positive stride after two months of poor performance at the auction.

The value of the tea rose to $2.37 per kilogramme in the latest sale when compared with the previous trading where it fetched $2.32

These upward prices were driven by demand, coming on the back of a rise in the volume of tea, which was offered for sale during the session.

According to the East African Tea Trade Association.“There was a good demand for the 185,020 (12.3 million kilogrammes) on offer with 129,380 (8.6 million kilogrammes) sold.”

The association further added that the better returns saw the quantity of tea withdrawn from the auction floor fall to 29 per cent from a high of 33 per cent last week as producers released more produce to the market to benefit from the good offers.

Pakistan continues to be the top buyer of Kenya’s tea accounting for 40 per cent of the total produce sold at the sale auction.

The ongoing Russian -Ukraine war which started late February this year drastically cut the supply of the beverage to Moscow, which is Kenya’s 5th largest buyer.

This low absorption of tea by the leading buyers meant that huge volumes of tea were not being offloaded from the auction, resulting in a high supply at the market.

In the month of August and September, Kenyan tea realized low prices which were caused by industry tumbles.

GAROWE ONLINE