Tobacco exports up 7.4% in April

Tobacco exports surged by 7.4 per cent to 21,659 tonnes in the first month of the current financial year, the Tobacco Board said today.

The country had shipped 20,166 tonnes of tobacco in the same month last year, according to the Tobacco Board data.

“Though exports rose quantity-wise last month, there is not much difference in terms of value,” a Tobacco Board official said. In value terms, the exports were at Rs 349.81 crore in April this year, against Rs 348.91 crore in the same period last year, he said.

“Poor quality of tobacco plus higher domestic supplies reduced the export realisation, which fell to $4.7 a kg from $5.4 a kg last year,” the official said.

Of the total tobacco exports in April, raw tobacco shipments were at 19,298 tonnes, while that of manufactured products like beedi and cigarettes were at 2,361 tonnes.