A massive increase has happened in the offer for Sale No: 17 of the auctions of Coonoor Tea Trade Association which will conclude on Friday.

The volume of 23.32 lakh kg catalogued is the highest offer in any auction so far this calendar. It is a whopping 8.26 lakh kg more than the previous auction.

The arrival of fresh teas manufactured from the green leaf plucked after the recent favourable rains as also the re-cataloguing of some teas unsold in previous weeks has resulted in the year’s highest offer this week.

Of the 23.32 lakh kg offered for this week’s auctions, as much as 21.94 lakh kg belongs to CTC variety and only 1.38 lakh kg orthodox variety. The proportion of orthodox teas continues to be low in both leaf and dust grades. In the leaf tea counter, only 90,000 kg belongs to orthodox while 15.13 lakh kg, CTC. Among the dust tea, only 48,000 kg belongs to orthodox while 6.81 lakh kg, CTC. In all, 16.03 lakh kg belongs to Leaf grades and 7.29 lakh kg, Dust grades.

The Red Dust grade of Homedale Estate, auctioned by Global Tea Brokers, topped the entire auctions last week when Nishanthi Traders bought it for ₹301 a kg. This was the only tea, CTC or orthodox, from bought leaf or corporate sector, which crossed ₹300/kg mark this week. Among other CTC teas, Pinewood Estate got ₹252, Crosshill Estate Special ₹215 and Bellati Estate ₹201.

Quotations with the brokers indicated ₹94-99 a kg for plain Leaf grades and ₹155-173 for the best grades. For plain Dust grades, they ranged ₹102-107 and for the best grades, ₹150-201.

“The higher volume being offered is an advantage to upcountry buyers and exporters because there is a fall of around 25 per cent in North Indian production due to drought-like situation in plantation areas forcing them to scout for teas from the South,” L Vairavan, Chairman, Coonoor Tea Trade Association, told BusinessLine .

“With substantial volume of fresh teas in the current week’s catalogue, the increased demand arising from the general immunity strengthening consciousness among the consumers in India and abroad can be met,” he noted.

“As the tea industry in The Nilgiris is exempted from the ongoing lockdown, upcountry traders can bridge short supplies in their stock building,” he pointed out.

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