Chinese garlic export price soars, overseas buyers become cautious
"The export price of Chinese garlic began to rise after the Chinese Spring Festival [February 5th, 2…"The export price of Chinese garlic began to rise after the Chinese Spring Festival [February 5th, 2019]. The current price increase is relatively small, but at the beginning of March the price soared. The price of relatively good-quality garlic increased by 1.8 yuan [0.27 USD] per kg in comparison with the price of garlic before Spring Festival. Even the price of relatively poor-quality garlic showed a significant increase."
"I think there are three main reasons for the soaring garlic price in March: first, the overall quality of garlic in 2018 was relatively low, which means that the supply volume of top-quality garlic is small. Second, speculation in the garlic market drives the price up. Last week in particular the price increased every day. Third, the surface area devoted to garlic plantation in 2019 is smaller than in 2018. People in the garlic industry predict that the garlic price will remain relatively high in 2019."
"The next harvest of Chinese garlic will begin in middle to late May. The early-season garlic from Henan will be the first on the market. Fresh garlic will enter the market in bulk around June 15th. Overseas buyers are likely to remain cautious and only buy according to demand. If the price goes up, the purchase volume of overseas traders will probably go down."
"At the moment, we mainly supply Jinxiang garlic to European markets. In April we plan to begin supplying peeled red onions, peeled yellow onions, preserved ginger, and air-dried ginger from production areas in Yunnan, China."