Although the east African nation is a small producer compared with other regional growers such as Ethiopia and Uganda, its specialty beans are known for their high quality and are sought after for blending.

Grade AA fetched $261-$512 per bag at the sale that was held on Tuesday compared with $224-$600 at last week's auction, the exchange said in a report.

Grade AB went for $154-$428 per bag, down from $211-$521 at the previous auction.

Some 25,213 bags were offered for sale at the auction, the coffee exchange said, with only 6,869 being bought at a total value of $2.3 million.

Regulator Coffee Board of Kenya said in November it saw coffee output rising 6 percent in the October 2011-September 2012 crop year to 54,000 tonnes.