China is experiencing a significant increase in fruit imports as it expands its openness to the global market, including the simplification of customs clearance procedures. By the end of last year, 19 countries and regions around the world had signed protocols with China about quarantine requirements for 20 types of fresh fruits that were imported into the Chinese market. As a result of various favourable factors, last year saw China's fruit import value reach USD 16.85 billion, marking a 15% year-on-year increase, while the import volume reached 7.52 million tons, a 3% rise compared to the same period the previous year.
Wang Xiaou, head of the import-export company "Dongxin" located in the border town of Mohan in Yunnan Province (Southwest China), explained that in the past, his company faced significant delays in customs clearance when importing fruits such as durian, mangosteen, and longan from Southeast Asia through the Mohan border crossing. These delays impacted the freshness of the fruits. However, with the launch of freight trains operating on the China-Laos railway, the journey from Vientiane in Laos to Kunming (Southwest China) now takes only 26 hours, customs clearance times have been reduced by 80%, and costs have been cut by nearly 30%.
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership officially took effect on January 1, 2022, further boosting agricultural trade between China and other RCEP member countries. Currently, the fruit harvest season is underway in Southeast Asian countries, and fresh fruits are being transported to China via the China-Laos railway almost daily. Data shows that since the beginning of this year, more than 82,281 tons of imported fruits have been transported via the China-Laos railway. This information is reported by the website "Huanqiu Wang".
Source: russian.people