The Hindu Business Line : Coonoor tea auctions fetch higher price in first half

Teas sold through the auctions of the Coonoor Tea Trade Association have earned Rs 2.63 crore more in the first half of this year compared to last year, despite a lower volume sold, because of a higher price realisation.

An analysis of the performance shows that till June end, 26 auctions had been conducted with the sales volume at 1.74 crore kg. In the same period last year, a higher volume of 1.94 crore kg had been auctioned.

But, the lower volume helped the prices to rise and on an average, every kg sold this year fetched some Rs 6.20 more than last year. The average price now stood at Rs 46.71 a kg.

Consequently, the overall earnings now rose to Rs 81.28 crore from Rs 78.65 crore, posting an increase of 3.34 per cent.

Price trend

Although the increase is only marginal, this marks a reversal of the trend witnessed in the first quarter. Till March end, the earnings had dropped Rs 9.66 crore over the same period last year. That posted a massive reduction of over 23 per cent causing concern to the producers.

In the first quarter, the prices had shown an increase of just Rs 1.90 a kg, but in the second quarter, this gap had widened. In fact, the average price now had fallen to Rs 46.71 a kg from Rs 47.22 kg at the end of first quarter. But last year, the prices had fallen more steeply to Rs 40.51 from Rs 45.34.

In the case of CTC teas, the prices had risen to an average of Rs 46.71 a kg now from Rs 39.55 last year. But, the volume sold had fallen to 1.61 crore kg from 1.79 crore kg.

In the case of orthodox teas, the prices had risen to Rs 53.24 a kg from Rs 52.92 a kg.