Camellia expects record volumes but prices volatile

(Sharecast News) - Camellia expects volumes of all its core crops - Macadamia nuts, has avocados and tea leaves - to be at or near record highs following past investment and a year of favourable weather conditions.Camellia, which produces around 2% of the world's tea and last year supplied European millennials with 7,300 tonnes of avocados from Kenya, told investors on Tuesday that its excellent volumes had however been accompanied by volatile prices.In Bangladesh, tea prices saw record highs and also noted that in Kenya and Malawi, average tea prices were well above its earlier expectations.Camellia said that harvests for avocados and macadamias were "substantially complete" and noted that, whilst the significant fall in avocado prices across the globe had largely negated the increase in volume, increased macadamia prices had helped to offset the losses."Our remaining crops have performed in line with expectations. As a result, the board believes that the profit before tax of the group for the year is likely to be substantially above market forecasts," said Camellia.As of 1000 BST on Tuesday, Camellia shares, which earlier this month fell to their lowest point in almost two years, were up 5% to 9,800p.