Indian Tea Imports Down 18 Pc in April-May, 2011
India's tea imports dipped by almost 18 per cent in April-May this year to 2.31 million kg, Tea Board data shows.
The country had imported 2.81 million kg of tea in April-May, 2010, the data said.
India, the world's largest consumer of tea, imports the beverage only to re-export it to other countries. The dip in imports thus signals less re-exports.
While imports from Argentina, Kenya and Sri Lanka increased in April-May, in-bound shipments from Vietnam, Malawi, Indonesia, Nepal and China declined in the same period.
In the January-May period of the current calender year, imports of the brew fell by almost 17 per cent to 6.54 million kg from 7.84 million kg in the same period of the previous year.
India, the second biggest producer of tea in the world, accounts for about 28 per cent of global tea production and 14 per cent of trade. There are about 1,600 tea estates in India.
Source: indianexpress.com
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