Colombo: The Colombo Tea Auction, one of the largest and oldest ongoing tea auctions in the world, conducted it's first online sessions amid the coronavirus pandemic, local media reported.

The Colombo Tea Auction, which was suspended for two weeks due to a curfew imposed by the Sri Lankan government to contain the COVID-19 outbreak in the country, transitioned to an online platform in order to allow traders to buy and sell remotely, reports Xinhua news agency.

The online auctions were successfully held, dealing with 720,000 kg of Ex-Estate tea in 680 lots.

Imperial Teas, a leading local tea exporter, made the first successful bid at LKR 2,100 ($11) a kg.

Reports said that auctions for over 600,000 kg of High and Medium grown teas will be held on Sunday.

The online auction platform has so far seen registrations of over 300 buyers and eight brokers.

The Colombo Tea Auction sells an average of 300 million kg of tea every year.

Tea exports are historically one of Sri Lanka's leading foreign exchange earners.

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