Kenya’s tea exports fall by 17pc in March

What you need to know:

The total export volume for March stood at 35.04 million kilos compared with 42.31 million recorded in the same period last year.
During the month, Kenya tea was shipped to 41 export destinations compared to 42 in 2016, with Pakistan as the leading buyer.
The average auction price for January to March was higher at Sh300 per kilo compared with Sh250 for the same period last year.

Kenya’s tea exports dropped by 17 per cent in March compared with the same period last year.

Data from the Tea Directorate indicates that the total export volume for March stood at 35.04 million kilos compared with 42.31 million recorded in the same period last year.

In the period under review, 19.56 million kilos of tea were sold through the Mombasa auction against 26.78 million kilos recorded in March 2016.

During the month, Kenya tea was shipped to 41 export destinations compared to 42 in 2016, with Pakistan as the leading buyer.

“Pakistan was the leading export destination for Kenyan tea having imported 11.25 million kilos, accounting for 32 per cent of the total export volume,” said the directorate.

Other key export destinations for Kenyan tea were Egypt (5.87 million kilos), the UK (3.17 million kilos), Sudan (2.47 million kilos), UAE (2.31 million kilos), Yemen (1.65 million kilos), Russia (1.52 million kilos), Kazakhstan (0.92 million kilos), the US (0.65 million kilos) and Saudi Arabia (0.63 million kilos).

READ: Tea prices hit a two-year high after rising 6.3pc in last week’s auction

The 10 export destinations, most of which are traditional markets for Kenyan tea, accounted for 87 per cent of the total export volume. The average tea auction price for March was Sh292 per kilo, compared to Sh230 recorded in March 2016.

However, it was slightly lower compared to Sh300 and Sh360 recorded in January and February 2017, respectively.

The average auction price for January to March was higher at Sh300 per kilo compared with Sh250 for the same period last year.

Improved prices were attributed to high demand during winter in the Northern Hemisphere coupled with the lower supply.

Tea production for 2017 is expected to drop by 11 per cent due to drought.

The Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) said production of green leaf will drop from 473 million kilos realised in 2016 to about 420 million this year.

Tea production for 2016 rose 18.4 per cent above the previous year’s harvest, hitting an all time high of 399 million kilos.