Commodity Watch

Tea Prices Increase Slightly At The Weekly Mombasa Auction

BY Jane Muia · September 12, 2022 10:09 am

KEY POINTS

According to the Economic Survey 2022 by the Kenya National Bureau of Statics (KNBS), this was an increase from the 130.3 billion shillings recorded in the previous year.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Pakistan is the top consumer of Kenya’s tea. According to industry data, Pakistan buys an average of up to 70 million kilograms of Kenyan tea annually.

Last year Kenya exported tea valued at $503 million to Pakistan. According to the East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA), Pakistan is the biggest buyer at the Mombasa Tea Auction, taking up 38 percent of the total weekly sales.

Tea prices increased slightly at the weekly Mombasa auction to $2.27 per kilo last week, compared to the $2.26 recorded in the previous week, data by the East African Tea Trade Association (EATA) shows.

The number of kilograms offered for sale increased to 11.3 million compared with the 10.7 million kilograms offered during the previous sale. Equally, of all the tea offered for sale, 8.5 million kilograms were sold compared to the 7.7 million kilograms sold in the previous sale.

This year Kenyan tea has managed to remain above two dollars per kilo as compared to last year when the prices ranged between $1.80 (Sh 215.28 ) and $1.90 (Sh 227.24 ).

This is despite low demand from some of the key buyers such as Pakistan. In June Pakistan announced that it would cut tea consumption, citing financial uncertainties. The country is among the world’s top tea importers. The typical Pakistani is believed to drink at least three cups a day on average.

The country’s foreign exchange reserves dropped from around $16 billion (Sh1.9 trillion) in February, to less than $10 billion (Sh1.2 trillion) in the first week of June making it harder for the country to cover the cost of two months of all its imports.

Pakistan is the top consumer of Kenya’s tea. According to industry data, Pakistan buys an average of up to 70 million kilograms of Kenyan tea annually. Last year Kenya exported tea valued at $503 million to Pakistan. According to the East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA), Pakistan is the biggest buyer at the Mombasa Tea Auction, taking up 38 percent of the total weekly sales.

Tea is among Kenya’s leading exports and has been hailed for earning the country high revenue alongside the horticulture sector. Last year, tea accounted for about 19.6 percent of the total domestic exports valued at 130.9 billion shillings.

According to the Economic Survey 2022 by the Kenya National Bureau of Statics (KNBS), this was an increase from the 130.3 billion shillings recorded in the previous year.