Tea prices up to a three-month high at auction

Tea prices at the Mombasa auction closed at a three-month high last week after a losing streak in the previous sales, raising farmers’ hope of improved earnings this financial year.

A kilogramme of tea on average was sold at Sh229, having gone up by six per cent from the previous sale where it attracted Sh217.

The volume of the commodity offered increased by 358,910 kilogrammes from the previous week.

“Out of 113,933 packages (7,410,000kgs) available for sale, 104,608 packages (6,808,111kgs) were sold with only 8.18 per cent untaken,” says East Africa Tea Traders Association.

The prices, however, were lower compared to the same period last year when a kilogramme of made tea fetched Sh298.

The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) has warned that earnings for this financial year will be affected by the low prices currently being witnessed at the auction and the prevailing cold season which will be followed by a dry spell.

Tea farmers earned a record Sh84 billion from leaves delivered, making it the second year of improved earnings, helped by a stable exchange rate and high pricing of the commodity in the world market.

The earnings are Sh21 billion more than what was registered last season where the KTDA recorded sales of Sh63 billion.

Farmers from 67 factories across the country under the management of the KTDA have received a total of Sh17.26 billion as initial monthly payment at an average rate of Sh14 per kilo.