Sri Lanka tea crop steady

July 22, 2011 (LBO) - Sri Lanka's tea crop is steady at the half-year mark although there was a dip in June, with global tea statistics showing a big shortfall in East Africa while output is up in India, brokers said. The production of low grown teas, which make up over half the crop, was two million kilos lower in June 2011 from a year ago, was however the second highest recorded for June for at least the last decade, they said.

John Keells brokers said Sri Lanka's tea crop for June 2011 fell eight percent or 2.4 million kilos to 28.7 million kilos from a year ago.

The shortfall came from the medium and low grown elevations while the highb grown crop was up in June.

"Despite the shortfall for the month, Sri Lanka™s tea crop continues to maintain a 0.

61 percent to-date increase over last year," John Keells said.

"On the global front Kenya, Malawi, South India, Uganda and Indonesia have all recorded crop deficits whilst the North Indian crop to end-May has recorded a surplus of 11.

2 million kilos."

Kenya alone has a shortfall in crop of 33.6 million kilos to end-May.

The brokers said the crop situation in Kenya is unlikely to get better owing to extremely dry weather conditions prevailin