Tea prices at the weekly Mombasa auction rebounded this week as the volumes traded increased.
A kilo of tea leaf sold at $2.45(Sh275.62) during the week, up from $2.29(Sh257.63) in the previous week.
There was a good general demand for 188,528 Packages (12,344,312.00 kilos) available for sale with 153,255 packages (10,192,804 kilos)being sold, said the East African Tea Traders Association (EATTA)
According to EATTA , the total volumes traded wer 91,785.00 kilos more than last week.
In the week, 18.71 per cent packages remained unsold.
Pakistan Packers lent more and strong support and were dominant and forceful while Bazaar and Egyptian Packers showed strong interest.
Pakistan which absorbs about 40 per cent of all tea exports from Kenya recently agreed to remove ’Attestation Fee’ that was charged by the Pakistan High Commission in Nairobi, a move that has made Kenyan tea competitive in the export market.
Kazakhstan, other CIS nations, Yemen and other Middle Eastern countries increased activity with UK and Russia active.
There were some purchases for Iran but Afghanistan, Sudan and Southern Sudan were quiet.
Local Packers lent some interest in line with price. Somalia was less active at the lower end of the market.
The prices at the auction have been going up for the last two months aided by the government’s directive on the reserve price.
In July, the Ministry of Agriculture directed traders to pay a $2 minimum reserve price for all Kenya Tea Development Agency teas at the auction following a sharp decline in prices that the government said was subjecting farmers to losses.
