US pork importers get little relief from lifting of ban

China has lifted bans on pork imports from some areas of the U.S. and Mexico, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said Tuesday.

However, analysts said the move would not likely lead to a surge of new imports.

After assessment of risks, the bans were lifted, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said in a notice on its website.The lifting of the ban had been expected earlier by officials in United States, the largest pork exporter, which exported $560 million to China in 2008.

China's pork imports this year have fallen partly because China, the world's biggest pork consumer, has increased its own production, driven by Beijing's subsidies over breeding sows.

In addition, falling pork prices prompted Beijing to stockpile more than 120,000 tons of pork. China's pork imports in the first 10 months of 2009 was only 110,000 tons, which is only one third of 373,000 tons for the whole last year.