(Yicai) Sept. 11 -- US coffee chain giant Starbucks has added several new tea products to its menus in China, with the trend showing no signs of slowing among coffee brands in the country since the start of the year.

Starbucks included a Longjing drink, a popular green tea variety in China from Hangzhou, among its new tea offerings launched yesterday. The Seattle-based company's local rivals, including Luckin Coffee and Cotti Coffee, also recently added new tea products.

Coffee brands face fierce competition and severe market tests to stand out in the Chinese coffee and tea markets. Nearly 140,000 milk tea stores and 38,000 coffee shops closed in China this year as of Sept. 10, according to third-party platform Canyandata.

Coffee and new-style Chinese milk tea are favored and sought after by young people based on frequency of consumption and market discussion, said Zhu Danpeng, an analyst of China's food industry. Coffee chains launching tea products adapt to the trend and better match their development and the core needs of the sinking market, Zhu added.

Editor: Martin Kadiev