Forbes Tea Market Report

This week’s Auction quantities totalled 5.2 m/kgs. There was good demand at irregular rates following quality.

Ex Estate offerings totalled 0.9 m/kgs. Overall quality showed no significant change except for a further decline in levels of seasonal quality of the Uvas.

Consequently, the availability of airmail bids too were limited resulting in significant price declines of the high priced teas.

The bearish trend continued this week as well particularly as the sale progressed with overall prices showing a drop of Rs.3-8 per kg. Shippers to Japan and the Continent continued to be selective whilst there was less activity from the CIS shippers.

A total of 2.7 m/kgs were on offer in the Low grown Tippy/Leafy catalogues this week. There was a fair selection of clean well made teas on offer.

Better made OP1s together with BOP1s were a strong feature this week whilst the cleaner secondaries too were fully firm to dearer. Better Pekoes together with bold below best types were fully firm to dearer. High priced OP/OPAs however declined. Cleaner below best OP/OPAs together with the teas at the lower end were fully firm to dearer. In the Tippy catalogues too better made FBOPs and FF1s were fully firm to dearer whilst the cleaner secondaries too were irregularly dearer. Well made FFs too sold well although some of the high prices of last week could not be attained. There was good demand from Saudi Arabia, CIS, Turkey, Iran and Dubai whilst Iraq too was active.

August tea crop down
Sri Lanka tea production for the month of August shows a decline of 2.91 m/kgs or approximately 11.01% when compared to the corresponding month of last year.

All elevations recorded a decline with the Low grown sector showing the highest drop for the month.

January – August too shows a decline of 5.0 m/kgs when compared to the corresponding period last year. -DM Financial Times