A 1-kilogram quantity of hand-rolled new Japanese tea leaves picked in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, fetched a record 1.09 million yen ($10,200) on Wednesday in the season's first auction at a local market.Shizuoka is known for its Japanese tea production. As mild weather since March has hastened tea leaves' growth, the opening auction was moved forward by six days from the previous year. Picking of tea leaves is expected to peak in early May.Transactions began shortly after the 7 a.m. opening bell with about 1,000 people packing the market. Buyers took handfuls of leaves to check the…READ FULL ARTICLE
