This season’s first seaborne Chilean cherry ship arrived at the port last weekend, and containers were opened in the market one after another at the beginning of this week. It is understood that the shipping varieties of this batch include Santina, and Royal Dawn, with Santina being the most common.
The specifications are complete, and the proportion of different sizes is relatively even. Some merchants said that the overall hardness was close to cherries by the air freight in the past two weeks, but some were not as good as expected. On the day when the containers were open, most of the merchants stayed on the sidelines and negotiated prices to get cherries the next day, with channel dealers taking more cherries. The overall sales speed is not as good as last year.
Left: Chilean cherries; Right: Peruvian green grapes
Air-freighted cherries continue to arrive, with more two-in-one sizes arriving later this week. However, it is currently relatively difficult to sell cherries, and many merchants prefer smaller sizes. In terms of price, 5KG shipped by sea costs about ￥400-500, and 5KG shipped by air costs ￥500-600. Merchants said that the current volume of sea freight is not large and the price of the first batch is usually higher, which is not much different from that of air freight.
This week, air freight prices dropped by about ￥30-￥50/piece compared with last week, and were not greatly affected by the arrival of sea freight. Many merchants still prefer air freight. Some merchants also said that at present, channel dealers give priority to cherries by sea freight, while secondary wholesale markets, e-commerce and surrounding individual customers mostly choose air freight.
Another ship carrying Chilean cherries is expected to dock at the port this Saturday, and shipping volume will increase next week.
Peru Red Globe
The Peruvian grape season has begun. Green grapes were launched at the end of last month, and red grapes arrived in small quantities this week. Green grapes include Autumn Crisp and Sweet Globe, with Autumn Crisp being the most common. At present, a large box of 7 kilograms of green grapes is sold for about ￥270/box, which is a 10 to 20% decrease in price compared with the same period last year. The taste is crisp, and the sweetness needs to be improved. Peruvian Red Globe has arrived in small quantities and currently sells for about ￥220/box. The merchant said that the price is roughly the same as before. Although the sweetness is not quite there, the taste is acceptable at this stage.
In addition to small cups, boxed domestic Yunnan blueberries are available in small quantities. This year, Yunnan blueberries are on the market nearly two months earlier than before, and the price is not comparable to previous years. At present, the arrival quantity is small and the price is relatively high. For example, the price of 15+ is about ￥190/piece, and the price of 18+ is about ￥240/piece. The taste is slightly sour. The price of Peruvian blueberries has not changed much from before. 15+ and 18+ sell for ￥140/piece and ￥150/piece respectively.
Left: Yunnan blueberries; Right: Apples imported from France
In terms of fruits from Southeast Asia, Monthong durians are mainly from Thailand and Vietnam. There are still a few Kanyao durians in Vietnam, and the price is stable. Due to the increase in arrivals of Thai Monthong, the price has dropped by about 25% from two weeks ago. A6 fruits currently cost about ￥880-900/piece. Overall, there are not many durians arriving, and sales are also slow. As for coconut, another Southeast Asian fruit, it is understood that Coconut King sells well, especially to northern merchants, because it can be made into coconut chicken pot and other dishes. Young coconut sells slowly because the weather is getting colder and people drink less.
Chinese grapefruits
The grapefruits currently on the market are domestically produced and will be launched in early November. Currently, #35 is sold for about ￥165/piece. The merchant said that the price is close to the past, but sales have been slow recently.