Price hike at the Hong Kong tea fair


21 August 2012
Price hike at the Hong Kong tea fair

The Hong Kong tea fair is taking place at the moment, and the context is particularly difficult for western buyers. For the past few years, erratic weather conditions have affected harvests, and the quantities produced have fallen sharply. In addition, production costs, whether in India or China, have risen considerably, as has the cost of sea freight. What is more, the very low value of the euro is pushing up the price of tea, which is generally traded in dollars. On top of all this, in China and India, the world’s two biggest tea producers, the middle classes, which did not exist in the recent past, now represent several hundreds of millions of people, many of whom enjoy drinking good quality teas. They aspired for so long, and now they have the means at their disposal. So in these two countries the domestic markets have expanded massively, and there are plenty of Indian and Chinese tea connoisseurs who are now buying the best teas that used to be reserved for export only. We can understand them, even if it is costly for us.

You like this post?
Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Share

Similar articles

Selecting the best tea requires patience

7 October 2011

In China as well as in India, when it comes to making high quality tea, no effort is spared in ensuring that only the best leaves are selected. Here, in…

Share on Facebook. Tweet this!

How to make tea with delicacy

1 June 2012

In China, there are many different ways of drinking tea, as well as a vast array of recipients. The latter range from glass tumblers, which are fairly widespread, to cups…

Share on Facebook. Tweet this!

Good Nepalese teas annoy Darjeeling producers

16 June 2017

Indian tea producers are complaining about unfair competition from Nepal, and I don’t buy their argument. They don’t complain that Japan, China and other countries produce tea, they have to…

Share on Facebook. Tweet this!