Tea — Market Analysis
QAA Intelligence provides market analysis, price trends, supply-demand insight and trading intelligence for the global tea market, tracking the major auction benchmarks.
Price Trend
Recent price history (last 14 days)
| Date | Price |
|---|---|
| 2026-02-01 04:00 GST | 2.70 USD/kg |
| 2026-03-01 04:00 GST | 2.69 USD/kg |
| 2026-04-01 04:00 GST | 2.83 USD/kg |
| 2026-05-01 04:00 GST | 3.00 USD/kg |
| 2026-06-01 04:00 GST | 2.97 USD/kg |
| 2026-07-01 04:00 GST | 2.98 USD/kg |
| 2026-08-01 04:00 GST | 2.91 USD/kg |
| 2026-09-01 04:00 GST | 2.85 USD/kg |
Tea Market Overview
Tea prices are set through regional auction systems rather than a single global exchange -- Colombo, Kolkata and Mombasa are the three benchmark auction centers tracked here, alongside their combined average.
Global Supply & Demand
Tea supply is seasonal, tied to flush periods in growing regions, while global demand has grown steadily with rising consumption in both traditional and new markets.
Major Exporting Countries
Kenya, Sri Lanka and India are major tea-exporting countries and correspond to the principal auction centers tracked by the World Bank.
Major Importing Markets
The Middle East, Central Asia and the CIS region are significant tea-importing markets relevant to QAA's sourcing and distribution footprint.
Key Factors Affecting Tea Prices
Weather during flush periods in Kenya, Sri Lanka and India, auction-house supply volumes, and currency movements in producer countries are the main drivers behind tea price shifts.
Tea Market Outlook
QAA Intelligence tracks official World Bank auction benchmarks and structured news monitoring to surface shifts in the tea market, updated on a monthly cadence in line with available source data.
Global Benchmarks
Other market references -- different source, currency, unit or basis from the headline benchmark; not directly comparable with it.
Latest News
Market Analysis & Outlook
The World Bank's average-of-3-auctions tea benchmark fell 2.06% to $2.85/kg for September 2026, down from $2.91/kg in August. This blended figure masks diverging origin trends: Colombo tea rose 3.32% to $3.73/kg, likely supported by firmer overseas demand reported in south Asian auction reports, while Kolkata ($2.53/kg) and Mombasa ($2.30/kg) pulled the composite average lower. Headlines point to structural pressures in Kenya (export levy disputes) and India (ageing bushes, climate stress, wage demands), which could support prices longer-term but are not yet reflected in this month's weaker average. The exact cause of the net decline cannot be fully isolated from price data alone, but it reflects softer Kolkata/Mombasa pricing outweighing Colombo's gain. No clear link to oil, urea, or DAP moves is evident for tea at this time.
Outlook: Expect continued divergence between auction centers in the near term, with Colombo potentially holding firmer on export demand while African-origin prices stay under pressure; the blended benchmark may remain choppy until one origin trend dominates.
Data Coverage: ModerateWant the drivers, signals and outlook behind these numbers? QAA Commodity Advisory covers tea every two weeks. Buying it? QAA supplies tea from its own supplier network and manages the whole supply chain: see Tea sourcing. For any other product, QAA Trade Services buys it from your supplier, or one we find for you, then ships and delivers it.