Kenya’s World-Beating Tea Exports Set for First Drop Since 2017

Kenya’s black tea export volumes are poised to decline for the first time in five years after East Africa’s worst drought in four decades stymied crop planting and demand from its top buyers slowed.

Overseas sales fell 22% to 333.4 million kilograms in the first nine months of the year and are on track for the first decline since 2017, according to the Tea Board of Kenya. Production dropped about 2% in the period. The largest markets for Kenyan tea between January and September were Pakistan, Egypt, the UK and the United Arab Emirates, accounting for 69% of exports.

Reduced …