Zimbabwe Rakes in Nearly 100 Mln USD From Tobacco Selling

Source from:  english.people.com.cn 08/30/2006

Zimbabwe has raked in 98.3 million U.S. dollars from selling 49 million kg of tobacco that have gone under the hammer as of Friday last week, a local newspaper reported on Monday. The selling season may be extended due to huge supplies being registered at the auction floors as the original due date nears, The Herald said. The tobacco selling season opened on April 25 and was scheduled to close on August 31. During the comparative selling period last year, a total of 53 million kg had been sold earning the country 83 million U.S. dollars. This year, contract farmers have sold tobacco worth 57 million U.S. dollars while the auction floors bringing in 41.3 million U.S. dollars. Contract farmers sold a total of 27 million kg with the auction floors selling a total of 22 million kg of flue-cured tobacco. Tobacco sales are poised to surpass the predicted 52 million kg that would rake in 100 million U.S. dollars, with four trading days before the end of the normal selling season. According to the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) statistics, the "golden leaf" was selling at 2.02 U.S. dollars per kilogram last week. TIMB said that tobacco supplies are still very strong raising the possibility that the August 31 deadline could be extended. TIMB technical sales executive Andrew Matibiri said that the crop being delivered is of good quality and the firm prices are encouraging supplies. Experts here observed that around 90 million kg of the "golden leaf" would be produced in the 2006-2007 season if inputs are disbursed timely. Enditem