Vietnam is the largest banana supplier to the Chinese market.

In the first half of the year, Vietnam was the largest banana supplier to China. 420 thousand tons of Vietnamese bananas were exported to China, up 18.5% over the same period.

According to China Customs, in the first 6 months of 2024, import China's banana imports reached over 957 thousand tons, worth 486 million USD, down 4.6% in volume and 22.9% in value compared to the same period last year. Of which, China increased banana imports from Vietnam, Ecuador, Laos, Mexico, Thailand, but decreased imports from the Philippines and Cambodia.

In the first half of this year, Vietnam was the largest banana supplier to the Chinese market. There were 420 thousand tons of bananas exported from Vietnam to China, up 18.5% over the same period last year and accounting for nearly half of the banana imports into this market.

Vietnam is the largest banana supplier to the Chinese market. Illustrative photo.

The amount of bananas imported from Vietnam is nearly double that of the second-ranked country, the Philippines (222 thousand tons), and far exceeds other sources such as Ecuador (123 thousand tons), Cambodia (131 thousand tons), Laos (49 thousand tons), Mexico (7 thousand tons), Thailand (over 2 thousand tons), Myanmar (over 2 thousand tons), and Indonesia (1 thousand tons).

While China increased its purchases of bananas from Vietnam, it sharply reduced its imports of bananas from the Philippines. In the first half of this year, the amount of bananas imported from the Philippines into China decreased by 39.3% compared to the same period last year.

The epidemic is causing a sharp decrease in Philippine banana production. This is considered one of the main reasons why the amount of Philippine bananas entering the Chinese market has decreased so much in the first half of this year. The epidemic has also caused the price of Philippine bananas to increase. If in the first 2 months of this year, the average price of Philippine bananas imported into China was 524 USD/ton, in the first 6 months of the year, the average price has reached 547 USD/ton.

While Philippine banana prices have increased due to the pandemic, Ecuadorian banana imports to China have increased due to tensions in the Red Sea, leading to longer shipping times and increased shipping rates for shipping lines. In the first two months of the year, the average price of Ecuadorian bananas imported to China was $620 per ton. But when calculated in the first six months of the year, each ton of Ecuadorian bananas imported to China cost $671.

Meanwhile, due to not being affected by the epidemic, and sugar exported to China not being related to the Red Sea, Vietnamese banana prices were quite stable in the first 6 months of the year and at a very competitive level, averaging 408 USD/ton.

Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association (Vinafruit), said that compared to other banana exporting countries, when exporting bananas to China, Vietnam has a huge advantage in logistics due to its adjacent border, so it can export by road. The cross-Vietnam highway system that has been invested in and built in recent times has further shortened the time it takes to transport bananas to border gates with China. Therefore, the time and cost of transporting Vietnamese bananas to China are currently much lower than other countries.

China is currently one of the world's largest banana import markets. According to a report by the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Food, Indigenous Products and Animal By-products, in 2023, the country imported 1.77 million tons of bananas, worth 1.08 billion USD. Of which, bananas imported from the Philippines were 686 thousand tons, Vietnam 506 thousand tons, Ecuador 266 thousand tons, Cambodia 263 thousand tons. These four countries account for 97% of China's total banana imports.

In terms of quantity, bananas are China's most imported fruit, ahead of durian (1.43 million tons), coconut (1.18 million tons)... In terms of value, bananas rank fourth after fresh durian (6.72 billion USD), cherries (2.65 billion USD) and frozen durian (over 1 billion USD).

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