China imported 691,000 tons of sugar in the first seven months
of this year, a growth of 5.3 percent year-on-year, according to
General Administration of Customs.
The arrivals were valued at US$220 million, down 23.1 percent
from a year earlier.
The average import price fell 27 percent to US$313.2 per ton for
the seven-month period, customs sources said.
The price drop owed to oversupply on international markets, the
sources added.
Of the total imports, 660,000 tons, or 95.5 percent, came from
Cuba, Thailand, Guatemala, the Republic of Korea, Brazil and
Australia. Imports from Cuba, Brazil and Australia went down, while
those from Thailand and Guatemala went up.
(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2007)