Understanding Tea

United States’ Tea Trade: Imports and Exports

In 2021, the United States solidified its position as a key player in the global tea trade. With tea exports valued at $89.5M, the United States ranked 15th among the largest tea exporters worldwide. Although tea stood as the 738th most exported product from the United States in that year, its significance in the country’s trade landscape cannot be overlooked.

Tea Imports Exports

Tea Exports from the United States

The primary destinations for tea exports from the United States are Canada, Japan, Germany, Mexico, and the Netherlands. Canada accounted for the largest share, importing tea worth $46.7M from the United States. Japan followed with $4.05M, Germany with $3.82M, Mexico with $3.33M, and the Netherlands with $3.24M.

Notably, between 2020 and 2021, the United States experienced notable growth in tea exports to Canada, the Netherlands, and Germany. The Canadian market witnessed an impressive increase of $2.14M, while the Netherlands saw growth of $1.6M, and Germany showed an upsurge of $1.41M.

ContinentCountryTrade Value
AfricaAngola710
AfricaBenin32
AfricaBotswana9,301
AfricaRepublic of the Congo2
AfricaEgypt112,695
AfricaGhana201,127
AfricaGambia52,163
AfricaKenya2,690
AfricaLiberia16,740
AfricaMorocco10,417
AfricaNigeria64,527
AfricaSenegal5,422
AfricaSeychelles1,211
AfricaTanzania223
AfricaSouth Africa106,561
AfricaZambia459
AfricaZimbabwe78
AsiaAfghanistan18,094
AsiaUnited Arab Emirates1,137,171
AsiaArmenia13
AsiaAzerbaijan289
AsiaBangladesh10,681
AsiaBahrain20,911
AsiaBrunei25,510
AsiaChina1,105,951
AsiaCyprus1,359
AsiaHong Kong536,001
AsiaIndonesia293,840
AsiaIndia241,684
AsiaIraq8,887
AsiaIsrael97,617
AsiaJordan18,561
AsiaJapan4,051,561
AsiaCambodia501,558
AsiaSouth Korea1,642,065
AsiaKuwait119,884
AsiaLebanon25,312
AsiaSri Lanka5,467
AsiaMacau111,717
AsiaMaldives28,830
AsiaBurma113,974
AsiaMongolia49,968
AsiaMalaysia300,724
AsiaNepal228
AsiaOman5,709
AsiaPakistan4,045
AsiaPhilippines817,190
AsiaPalestine69
AsiaQatar59,991
AsiaSaudi Arabia387,367
AsiaSingapore434,507
AsiaThailand192,143
AsiaTurkey57,984
AsiaVietnam264,317
AsiaChinese Taipei189,160
AsiaYemen17,700
EuropeAustria107,513
EuropeBelgium578,034
EuropeBosnia and Herzegovina699
EuropeBelarus13,449
EuropeSwitzerland174,989
EuropeCzechia324,786
EuropeGermany3,824,485
EuropeDenmark1,521,771
EuropeSpain274,141
EuropeEstonia6,985
EuropeFinland6,934
EuropeFrance647,075
EuropeUnited Kingdom2,283,823
EuropeGreece16,831
EuropeHungary52,587
EuropeIreland145,824
EuropeIceland95,189
EuropeItaly114,552
EuropeLithuania7,891
EuropeLuxembourg108,377
EuropeLatvia11,025
EuropeMoldova340
EuropeMalta15,425
EuropeNetherlands3,241,506
EuropeNorway221,016
EuropePoland118,259
EuropePortugal15,058
EuropeRomania1,590
EuropeRussia252,400
EuropeSerbia4,968
EuropeSlovakia2,007
EuropeSlovenia4,014
EuropeSweden324,817
EuropeUkraine11,874
North AmericaAruba63,348
North AmericaAntigua and Barbuda7,836
North AmericaBahamas666,510
North AmericaBelize504,198
North AmericaBermuda262,480
North AmericaBarbados264,537
North AmericaCanada46,652,138
North AmericaCosta Rica384,301
North AmericaCuraçao107,715
North AmericaCayman Islands375,354
North AmericaDominica9,568
North AmericaDominican Republic363,193
North AmericaGrenada62,615
North AmericaGuatemala539,697
North AmericaHonduras365,700
North AmericaHaiti11,981
North AmericaJamaica425,761
North AmericaSaint Kitts and Nevis3,237
North AmericaSaint Lucia18,634
North AmericaSaint Martin29,847
North AmericaMexico3,328,012
North AmericaNicaragua29,286
North AmericaPanama512,989
North AmericaEl Salvador140,574
North AmericaTurks and Caicos Islands17,346
North AmericaTrinidad and Tobago370,044
North AmericaSaint Vincent and the Grenadines31,830
North AmericaBritish Virgin Islands8,430
OceaniaAustralia1,089,407
OceaniaCook Islands21,441
OceaniaFiji14,313
OceaniaMicronesia11,112
OceaniaMarshall Islands2,713
OceaniaNew Caledonia11,296
OceaniaNew Zealand449,018
OceaniaFrench Polynesia78,629
OceaniaSamoa21,695
South AmericaArgentina136,191
South AmericaBolivia33,973
South AmericaBrazil716,182
South AmericaChile1,606,980
South AmericaColombia797,092
South AmericaEcuador151,675
South AmericaGuyana209,749
South AmericaPeru352,781
South AmericaParaguay106,069
South AmericaSuriname85,055
South AmericaUruguay8,731
South AmericaVenezuela32,008
Table: Where Does the United States Export Its Tea (2021)

Tea Imports in the United States

In 2021, the United States imported tea valued at $526M, securing its place as the second-largest tea importer globally. Although tea ranked as the 496th most imported product in the United States that year, its demand remains significant. The United States primarily imports tea from Japan, India, China, Argentina, and Sri Lanka. Japan held the highest share, amounting to $93.5M, followed by India with $68.6M, China with $63.8M, Argentina with $53.9M, and Sri Lanka with $40.7M.

Between 2020 and 2021, the fastest-growing import markets for tea in the United States were Japan, experiencing a substantial increase of $13.9M, followed by Chinese Taipei with $11.3M and China with $10.6M.

ContinentCountryTrade Value
AfricaAngola1,494
AfricaBotswana14
AfricaCote d’Ivoire20,549
AfricaEgypt599,624
AfricaEthiopia39,544
AfricaGhana7,543
AfricaKenya6,993,725
AfricaMorocco2,054,536
AfricaMadagascar2,274
AfricaMozambique354,357
AfricaMalawi14,646,953
AfricaRwanda639,802
AfricaSudan25,865
AfricaSenegal4,145
AfricaEswatini34
AfricaTanzania253,619
AfricaSouth Africa271,374
AfricaZimbabwe3,536,073
AsiaAfghanistan7,308
AsiaUnited Arab Emirates7,509,137
AsiaArmenia6,296
AsiaAzerbaijan36,292
AsiaBangladesh934,347
AsiaChina63,844,054
AsiaGeorgia4,078
AsiaHong Kong1,397,978
AsiaIndonesia7,288,414
AsiaIndia68,550,664
AsiaIraq2,347
AsiaIsrael931,594
AsiaJordan479,586
AsiaJapan93,498,078
AsiaSouth Korea3,960,542
AsiaLebanon10,489
AsiaSri Lanka40,697,276
AsiaBurma517,327
AsiaMongolia6,247
AsiaMalaysia69,265
AsiaNepal279,870
AsiaPakistan4,574,368
AsiaPhilippines125,913
AsiaSaudi Arabia23,183
AsiaSingapore307,932
AsiaSyria2,577
AsiaThailand3,601,648
AsiaTurkey1,479,339
AsiaVietnam9,179,906
AsiaChinese Taipei26,164,837
AsiaYemen238,768
EuropeAlbania12,107
EuropeAustria134,768
EuropeBelgium91,047
EuropeBulgaria29,817
EuropeSwitzerland132
EuropeCzechia249,897
EuropeGermany20,599,052
EuropeDenmark14,969
EuropeSpain468,824
EuropeFinland15,388
EuropeFrance2,371,225
EuropeUnited Kingdom20,955,667
EuropeGreece144,746
EuropeCroatia2,395
EuropeHungary242
EuropeIreland4,946,200
EuropeIceland6,191
EuropeItaly125,862
EuropeLithuania320
EuropeLuxembourg369
EuropeLatvia7,121
EuropeNorth Macedonia29,492
EuropeMontenegro353
EuropeNetherlands295,642
EuropePoland20,009,967
EuropePortugal87,154
EuropeRomania2,976
EuropeRussia1,206,161
EuropeSerbia500
EuropeSlovakia862
EuropeSweden208,359
EuropeUkraine137,047
North AmericaAruba5
North AmericaCanada28,593,366
North AmericaCosta Rica12,832
North AmericaDominican Republic39,233
North AmericaGuatemala228,406
North AmericaHonduras851
North AmericaJamaica1,316,227
North AmericaMexico1,326,578
North AmericaNicaragua40,197
North AmericaEl Salvador6,763
North AmericaTrinidad and Tobago11,662
North AmericaSaint Vincent and the Grenadines50
OceaniaAustralia734,369
OceaniaFiji39,555
OceaniaNew Zealand15,887
OceaniaPapua New Guinea40,748
South AmericaArgentina53,890,851
South AmericaBolivia2,320
South AmericaBrazil948,191
South AmericaChile67,572
South AmericaColombia168,176
South AmericaEcuador727,339
South AmericaGuyana105
South AmericaPeru232,743
South AmericaParaguay3,215
South AmericaUruguay1,183
Table: Where Does the United States Import Its Tea (2021)

Vietnam Tea: A Popular and Reliable Choice for the United States’ Imports

Vietnam tea has consistently been a popular and trustworthy choice for the United States, thanks to its premium quality and competitive pricing. In 2021, the United States imported tea from Vietnam with a total value of $9,179,906. Vietnam holds a significant position as an important supplier of tea to the United States, catering to its tea requirements effectively.

Tariffs on Tea Trade

In 2018, the average tariff rate applied by the United States on tea imports stood at 1.53%. While the United States maintained a relatively moderate tariff rate, some countries imposed higher import tariffs on tea. North Korea, Cuba, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Algeria had the highest import tariffs for tea, subject to the Most Favored Nation duty rate treatment, ranging from 2.13% to 6.4%.

Conclusion

The United States continues to play a significant role in the global tea trade, both as an exporter and importer. Its tea exports have gained traction in countries such as Canada, Japan, and Germany, reflecting the high quality and diverse range of tea products. Simultaneously, the United States satisfies its domestic demand by importing tea from key origins like Japan, India, and China. Understanding the tariff rates applied to tea imports is essential for tea traders, as some countries impose higher duties. As the United States remains an influential player in the global tea market, its role in shaping the industry’s dynamics will continue to evolve, impacting both international trade and domestic consumption patterns.

Data: BACI

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