Colombo, July 14 (Agency) Sri Lanka’s tea exports in the first half of this year are down by 9 per cent volume wise whilst earnings have jumped by 28 per cent from a year ago, a newspaper reported on Thursday. The Daily FT said 125.2 million kg of tea was shipped from January to June this year compared to 136.9 million kg in the corresponding period of 2021, reflecting a 11.6 million kg drop.Sri Lanka shipped 23.5 million kg in June, the highest quantity in any month this year, but this was 13 per cent lower than last year’s June quantity of 26.9 million kg, the report said.
However, following a sharp depreciation of the rupee, earnings for the first half rose to Rs. 164.2 billion or 28 per cent more than the figure of Rs. 127 billion achieved in 2021. This converts to some $ 577 million against $ 650 the year before.Iraq remains the number one destination for Sri Lankan tea, followed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Iran.