Kenya top tea grade prices rise for fourth week

Thursday, 6 December 2012 01:18 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

NAIROBI (Reuters): The average price of Kenya’s top tea grade rose to $4.33 per kg at the auction this week from $4.29 last week, market participants said on Wednesday.

The east African nation is the world’s biggest exporter of black tea, and the crop is Kenya’s largest foreign exchange earner, fetching $1.27 billion last year.

Africa Tea Brokers (ATB) said Best Broken Pekoe Ones went for $4.66-$4.00 per kg, compared with $4.62-$3.96 last week. It was the fourth price increase in as many weeks.

Best Pekoe Fanning Ones fell to $4.08-$3.77 per kg, versus $4.18-$3.82 at last week’s sale, ATB said in a market report.

The broker said some 121,987 packages or 7.9 million kg had been offered for sale this week, down from 124,315 last week.

Egyptian Packers and the Pakistan Bazaar bought more tea than last week, as did Middle Eastern countries. Afghanistan and Pakistan Packers bought less tea than last week.