Kolkata: Tea planters and exporters are keeping their fingers crossed ahead of the new season in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak as they apprehend that the demand from overseas markets will decline and price realisation could be impacted.
Tea exporters are more concerned about Iran and China, the two countries badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Iran is a critical market for us. There is a concern about demand for new season tea from the Persian Gulf nation due to coronavirus outbreak. There might be a decline in demand in the short term,” Indian Tea Exporters’ Association chairman Anshuman Kanoria said Thursday here.
“China-the epicentre of COVID-19 is a major importer of Indian black tea. Imports of the beverage from the neighbouring countries are also expected to be impacted,” Kanoria added.
China imported over 13 million kg of tea from India in 2019 and is seen as a prospective market for even 20 million kilogram in the next two years, Kanoria informed and added that a decrease in imports from the neighbouring country will adversely hit the Assam tea industry as it mostly buys the commodity from there.
“With the coronavirus spreading at an alarming rate in China, we do not think that tea export will touch 13 million kilogram shipment this year,” Kanoria pointed out.
“We have come to know from exporters that things are moving slowly in terms of bagging new orders, though there were no cancellations as such. Iran, which is a key market for orthodox variety of Assam tea, is a concern for us,” added Kanoria
Iran had imported around 53 million kg of tea in 2019.
“Tea producers are in tension as they do not know what will happen in the overseas markets,” North Eastern Tea Association’s adviser Bidyananda Barkakoty said.
Agencies