Kenyan horticulture export earnings rose by a third to hit Sh104 billion [1 billion USD] in the first eight months of 2018 compared to Sh78.2 billion [763 million USD] earned during a similar period last year.
Much of the growth was led by a rise in flower exports, whose earnings are forecast to grow further after Kenya Airways late last month began direct flights to New York.
Latest data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics shows that flower exports brought in Sh76.9 billion [750 million USD] from sales of 105.3 million metric tonnes in the period, a 38 percent rise from the Sh55.6 billion [542.6 million USD] earned up to August 2017.