China's Grain Exports Plunge 41 Percent in 1st Half Year

BEIJING, August 8 (Xinhua) -- China's grain exports fell by 41 percent in the first six months of this year, the China Daily Business Weekly reported on Sunday.

During the January-June period, exports of agricultural products hit 6.17 billion U.S. dollars, down 2.5 percent from the same period a year ago. The imports amounted to 3.83 billion U.S. dollars, up 3.6 percent, with a trade surplus of 2.34 billion U.S. dollars, the report quoted the figures from the Ministry of Agriculture.

Among agricultural products, grain exports hit 2.33 million tons, down 41 percent, while its imports reached 2.94 million tons, down 15 percent.

The country sold 1.03 million tons of rice abroad, down 15.5 percent on a year-on-year basis. It imported 87,000 tons of rice, down 34 percent. Corn exports reached 1.01 million tons, down 58 percent; and corn imports hit 20,000 tons, down 73 percent from the same period a year ago.

According to the ministry's information center, China became a net exporter of rice this year. But, in terms of agricultural products as a whole, it is a net importer of farm produce.

China's imports of agricultural products were mainly wheat and soybeans used to supplement domestic supplies of high quality corps during the first six months, the report said.

"China will keep on importing high quality grains from abroad to supplement domestic supplies. The move can also help strengthen the sense of competitiveness of Chinese farmers and grain- producing enterprises," the report quoted the ministry's experts as saying.

The ministry's center said that during the first six months of this year, rapeseed imports were 587,000 tons, showing a year-on- year increase of 420,000 tons, thus aggravating an oversupply of the crop on the domestic market.

The information center said that during the first six months this year exports of Chinese agricultural products to its traditional markets in Europe and Asia decreased by 21 percent and 1.1 percent from the same period last year, respectively.

But, agricultural exports to the African market gained an eye- catching increase of 78 percent from last year, the center said.