India's October tea output drops 16.7%, prices rise

India's October tea production fell 16.7% from a year earlier to 160.67 million kilograms (kg), the state-run Tea Board said, as output fell in the top growing Assam state.

Production in the north-eastern state of Assam, which accounts for more than half the country's production, dropped 20% year on year to 89.60 million kg, the board said. Tea plucking in India, the world's second-biggest tea producer, usually accelerates from June to October.

Lower tea production lifted average tea prices in October to 185.16 rupees ($2.28) per kg, up 10.5% year on year, according to the Tea Board.


The country exports CTC (crush-tear-curl) grade mainly to Egypt and the United Kingdom, with the orthodox variety shipped to Iraq, Iran and Russia. ($1 = 81.1570 Indian rupees)