+33 680 38 14 46
Snowfall disrupts market ahead of Chinese New Year
China
Saturday 02 February 2008
Snowfall that has brought parts of China to a standstill is impacting the fresh produce market in the run up to Chinese New Year.
Heavy snowfall across central, southern and eastern parts of China is causing major disruption to the supply and distribution of fresh fruit and vegetables for the important Lunar New Year trading period, according to local importers.
The snowfall - the heaviest to hit China in five decades - has caused chaos across the country, cutting road and rail links and thwarting tens of millions of travellers trying to return home for the Chinese New Year (CNY) holiday, which begins on 7 February, according to state media.
The onset of CNY traditionally spurs a sharp increase in demand for fresh fruit, but traders in China's key import hub in the southeast told Fruitnet that the snowfall has prevented imported fruits from reaching their destination markets in the central and northern regions of the country.
"The situation is very serious and it's having a big impact on the fruit and vegetable markets as a lot of (local and imported) product has been delayed or stuck on the roads for the past five days," said Golden Wing Mau's Raymond Jin.
With routes to key markets like Shanghai and Beijing disrupted, traders at Jiangnan market in Guangzhou are pushing sales in southern China as well as Hong Kong in order to clear new arrivals.
"A lot of fruit is stuck in Guangzhou but fortunately the supply volumes are lower than previous years, so the prices have not dropped dramatically," said one trader. "We're in a critical period though as time is running out for Chinese New Year sales. Northern buyers will stop ordering at the weekend because they need fruit to arrive one or two days before the holiday."
In China's northern markets, traders who landed fruit before the bad weather struck are reportedly earning high prices. However, the overall fruit import market looks set for a prolonged sluggish period after CNY as the delayed sales could lead to a supply glut, importers warned.
Heavy snowfall across central, southern and eastern parts of China is causing major disruption to the supply and distribution of fresh fruit and vegetables for the important Lunar New Year trading period, according to local importers.
The snowfall - the heaviest to hit China in five decades - has caused chaos across the country, cutting road and rail links and thwarting tens of millions of travellers trying to return home for the Chinese New Year (CNY) holiday, which begins on 7 February, according to state media.
The onset of CNY traditionally spurs a sharp increase in demand for fresh fruit, but traders in China's key import hub in the southeast told Fruitnet that the snowfall has prevented imported fruits from reaching their destination markets in the central and northern regions of the country.
"The situation is very serious and it's having a big impact on the fruit and vegetable markets as a lot of (local and imported) product has been delayed or stuck on the roads for the past five days," said Golden Wing Mau's Raymond Jin.
With routes to key markets like Shanghai and Beijing disrupted, traders at Jiangnan market in Guangzhou are pushing sales in southern China as well as Hong Kong in order to clear new arrivals.
"A lot of fruit is stuck in Guangzhou but fortunately the supply volumes are lower than previous years, so the prices have not dropped dramatically," said one trader. "We're in a critical period though as time is running out for Chinese New Year sales. Northern buyers will stop ordering at the weekend because they need fruit to arrive one or two days before the holiday."
In China's northern markets, traders who landed fruit before the bad weather struck are reportedly earning high prices. However, the overall fruit import market looks set for a prolonged sluggish period after CNY as the delayed sales could lead to a supply glut, importers warned.
