What’s the price of tea and China and why would somebody ask me this question for no particular reason?
The price of tea in China has nothing to do with anything. When someone says “What’s that got to do with the price of tea in China?” they’re implying that what you just said doesn’t have anything to do with anything either.
Why tea, and why China? Tea came from China (as far as the English knew, anyway), and several expressions involving both are used, e.g., “I wouldn’t [something] for all the tea in China.” At the same time, China is far away, and the price of tea there can be relied upon to be irrelevant to most subjects.
Very interesting Nametag, but what’s that got to do with the price of tea in China? 
That was actually explained to me when I heard the expression. What I was really wondering was the actual price of tea over in China.
It really depends on what type of tea and where you get it. You can break it down to green vs. black teas, or more apropos (hate that word:)) urban or rural sale. A nice black tea like oolong can be pretty expensive if you buy a well packaged “branded” type in a tourist shop in Beijing, but it’s much less expensive away from the commercial centers.
Maybe you should go there and find out. (I’d like to.)
PC
Oh. Do you mean wholesale price, retail price, or the price of a cup of tea?
(He’s stalling, folks, he’s stalling)
Wellll. 
What woud you say the price of tea in the U.S. is? Are we talking by the pound? Futures? A cup of tea you make at home? Do the little tea bags that are included in chinese delivery (sometimes) count? Are you talking the Russian Tea Room? or maybe one of those asian tea houses. (and yes, I am stalling.;))
Cool… I think. Googly Pale has two posts in this thread, but the profile block says:
PosterChild is correct in pointing out that there are different qualities of tea available.
There are retail shops in Beijing that sell nothing but various grades of tea (loose, dried, tea leaves in large canisiters. You go in, choose one based on how much you want to spend, and ask the clerk to measure out some for you.
The grade you buy is usually determined by what you are going to use it for. For example, if you just want some everyday tea for your own use, you get a lower quality. If you are planning a party you want a mid-range; and if buying a gift for a valued friend’s special occasion a high end tea.
When I was there a few years ago the low end teas ran a little over $1.00 (US) for about a pound. Upper end teas could run more than ten times that.
These shops were in Beijing but were frequented by the locals not the tourists. The locals bought it loose leaf, from a metal canister; then after weighing, it was wrapped in a sheet of paper (similar to how McDonalds or Subway wraps your sandwich). The stuff for the tourists was like you’d find in a western store – individual tea bags, packed in cardboard boxes, wrapped in celophane.
Actually, some of the gourmet teas can cost more than gold ounce for ounce. Some of the 100+ year old Bolei (pu’er in Mandarin) you can get in Hong Kong really is that expensive.
Cecil chimes in on How much is all the tea in China worth?