May 10, 2012

China's Q1 grain import volume soars 499.9%

In Q1 2012, China has imported 3.84 million tonnes of grain, which has skyrocketed 499.9% on-year, amounting to US$1.3 billion, rising 379.9% in cost.

Meanwhile, China exported 209,000 tonnes of grain, which slipped 12.9%; the export value was US$160 million, increasing 1%. China imported 1.744 million tonnes of corns in the reporting period, and the import volume remained the same with that in the whole year of 2011 basically.

The increase of population, the limited potential in agricultural output growth and the lack of arable land will make China increase the import of crops, says the CEO of UkrLandFarming (ULF), an agricultural giant in Ukraine. China's import of corn is reckoned to exceed Mexico's and Japan's and rank No.1 globally in 2012.

It is said that China will actively participate in the cultivation on overseas farmlands, and Ukraine will surely be one of the most attractive targets.