New player enters tobacco auction floors

auction arena, a development expected to reduce congestion at the floors during the marketing season.
TIMB, which regulates the tobacco industry, said: “All stakeholders are advised that the 2012 auction tobacco marketing season opens on Wednesday, 15 February. Contract tobacco sales will open on Thursday, 16 February.
“The following four auction floors will operate: Tobacco Sales Floor, Boka Tobacco Auction Floors, Millennium Tobacco Floors and Premier Tobacco Auction Floors.”
TIMB said sales bookings would open on 6 February with deliveries accepted starting from 9 February.
In the past tobacco farmers expressed concern over congestion at the auction floors saying this negatively affected their operations as the growers spent much of their time at the floors trying to sell the crop.
The Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union executive director Mr Paul Zakariya has said irrigated tobacco growers had started harvesting and curing the crop in preparation for the selling season.
He urged the growers to start booking the floors to avoid congestion.
Despite TIMB having registered Boka Auction Floors before the start of the selling season last year, all three auction floors were marred by congestion.
The tobacco industry is one of the economic sectors that has contributed significantly to the Gross Domestic Product.
In the last marketing season 132 kilogrammes of the golden leaf went under the hammer generating more than $360 million.
This year stakeholders in the sector have projected that 150kg of the golden leaf will go under the hammer.
It is also hoped that the prevailing tight liquidity conditions would soften when the tobacco-selling season commences.