The Global Major Tea Exporting Countries

Global Tea Export & Import Situation

2012 Global Tea Major Import Market Distribution

In 2012, total global tea imports, which amounted to $ 6.353 billion, dropped by 1.14% compared to 2011’s. Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States as the world top three tea importing countries, their imports in 2012 respectively amounted to $ 650 million, $ 437 million and $ 437 million, accounting for 10.25%, 6.90% and 6.89% of total global tea imports. Among the top ten tea importing markets, Kenyan’s tea imports grew most quickly, whose tea imports in 2012 amounted to $ 176 million with an increase of 1379.33%.

Among major tea importing countries, the United States is an important export market for China tea, the Russian Federation in 2013 was China's seventh largest export market, and the United Kingdom is not in China's top 20 export markets.

Global Tea Major Export Market Distribution, from Jan. to Sep. 2013

From January to September in 2013, the global major tea exporting countries are China, India, Germany, United Kingdom and Poland. Among them, Germany and the United Kingdom are both major importers and exporters of tea. Although the United Kingdom and Germany are not tea producing countries, but the two both are tea processing trade power. About 20% of British tea imports one year are used for processing and then re-exporting, its annual tea exports account for more than 60% of its annual tea imports. Germany is the EU's most important trading nation of tea. Each year about 50% of Germany tea imports are used for re-processing and then re-exporting exports to 96 countries and regions all over the world.

German Tea export markets mainly are Europe and America, and Hamburg is the most important transfer city for the tea trade between Germany' and the EU since more than 70% of tea trading volume in Germany is in Hamburg port.

Source: UN Comtrade