Tea prices in Bangladesh declined for a fourth straight week at a weekly auction on Tuesday due to supplies of poor grade leaf amid political unrest.
Bangladesh has been racked by political violence since anti-government protests turned violent last month over a disputed election a year ago.
More than 100 people have died and hundreds have been injured, most of them in firebomb attacks on vehicles, amid a violent nationwide transport blockade by the main opposition party aimed at toppling the government.
Demand from local buyers was sluggish as political violence and uncertainties hurt business sentiment while volumes also slipped amid non-stop transport blockades disrupting supplies, an executive with National Brokers Ltd said.
Bangladeshi tea fetched an average 174.30 taka ($2.40) per kg, compared with 185.94 taka at the previous sale, he said.
There were higher supplies of poor quality tea for which buyers sought discounts, also leading to a drop in overall prices, he added.
About 1.63 million kg was offered at the sole auction centre in Chittagong, of which 31 percent remained unsold. In the previous auction, about 1.75 million kg was offered, with nearly 38 percent remaining unsold.
Tea production in Bangladesh rose 1.6 percent in 2013 to a record 63.5 million kg due to favourable weather but was still short of the domestic consumption of about 65 million kg.
The country has moved from being a net exporter to a net importer of tea because of rising consumption.
In April 2014, Bangladesh increased customs duty to 15 percent from 5 percent to discourage imports amid a drop in local prices due to ample supplies.
Following are the results of the latest auction. Figures are in Bangladesh taka per kg.
BROKENS
Bold/Large Brokens not quoted
Medium Brokens 145-165
Small Brokens 165-180
Plain Brokens 90-120
FANNINGS
Best Fannings 205-225
Good Fannings 190-200
Medium Fannings 160-170
Plain Fannings 90-120
DUST
Pekoe Dust not quoted
Red Dust 155-246
Dust 160-263
Churamoni Dust 170-249
– Reuters