India's exporters worry as trade sanctions against Iran kick in
Tea exporters in India fear a slowdown in exports to Iran, one of the biggest destinations for their orthodox tea, as trade sanctions by Western countries take effect. Iran is a major consumer of India's orthodox quality tea and imports 15 million kilograms directly, with a further 50 million kg imported through other routes, according to industry insiders. This represents a considerable part of India's total exports of 187 million kg in 2011. Such a slowdown could lead to an increase in the production of lower quality CTC tea at the expense of higher quality orthodox varieties. According to the Indian Tea Association, this, in turn, may negatively impact foreign exchange earnings and domestic prices of CTC tea. Experts hope that Pakistan will be able to offset some of the decline due to rising demand.