Tea prices surge as auction records decline in volumes

NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 7 -The price of tea at the weekly Mombasa tea auction recorded a sharp increase to USD 2.60 compared to USD2.55  during the previous sale while the volume decreased by 1.8 million kilos.

The auction held on  January 31, February 1, and 2  had 12.7 million kilograms offered for sale, a decrease from 14.1 million kilograms during the previous sale held on 24, 25, and 26 January.

Of all the tea offered for sale, 10.1 million kilograms were sold compared to 12.9 million kilograms sold during the previous sale.

“There was a fair demand for the 194,249 packages (12.7 million kilos) for sale with 152,684 packages (10.1 million kilos) being sold with 16.12 packages remaining unsold,”

Tea prices which have been on the rise since November come on the back of the minimum reserve price regime introduced by the government.

In July, KTDA introduced a minimum reserve price of Sh268 (USD2.43) per kilo of processed tea in a move aimed at cushioning smallholder farmers who were affected by the deteriorating market that had seen selling prices nearly slip below the cost of production.