"At the same time that the US, Spain and Egypt start to export Valencia and Lane Late Navel oranges to China, Hubei's own Lane Late navel orange crop starts to mature. Hubei's Lane Lates have Brix levels of 13 and their supply runs until May. Their availability in these months covers a supply gap of other domestic citrus in the weeks after the Chinese Spring Festival. Domestic Valencia oranges also start to ripen", explains Gu Yuanfei of Shenzhen Mutian Agriculture Development.
Total domestic Lane Late Navel orange yield is expected to reach 2 to 3 million tons. Current market prices hover around 6 Yuan per kilogram.
"Currently, it is still early stage for the Valencia orange season from Guangxi and Hunan province. The crop's sugar content is still less than that of the Late Lane Navels. Purchasing price, however, is already relatively high due to limited supply. Current price varies around 5.5 Yuan per kilogram."
Speculation and price collapse
"From September onward, domestic varieties start being available from Hunan province, followed by Ganzhou in Jiangxi province and the Sichuan and Guangxi regions. The 2015 harvest, orange purchasing price started at 3 Yuan per kilogram and eventually rose to 6 Yuan per kilogram. Encouraged by the rising prices, farmers started to stock oranges, hoping that they could sell at even better prices during the Chinese New Year. By the end of December, when the harvest season reached its peak, orange prices collapsed. Prices came down from 6 Yuan per kilogram to 4, and then to 2 Yuan per kilogram."
For more information, please contact:
Mr. Gu Yuanfei,
Shenzhen Mutian Agriculture Development
Tel: +86 138 2314 5911
Email: [email protected]
