Amid liquidations of containers left unsold before the Chinese New Year, the average price of cherries during week 6 was only USD 5.1 per kilo in the country's wholesale markets.
Two weeks after the CNY holiday and markets in China have slowly begun to move, the cherry sector has not managed to pick up. Although there were small reopenings last week, only 20% of what reached the market was sold.
“Last week was the first week of sales after the Chinese New Year and, to be honest, there was not much good news. The price of cherries is down, most likely many of the unsold containers are being sold off, the quality is very variable, there has been a lot of talk about some batches of Regina that have a bad taste and the average price was USD 5.1 per kilo in the Guangzhou wholesale market.”, said Isabel Quiroz, Director and Founder of iQonsulting.
In the United States and Europe, prices have also fallen, but are still higher than those of the same period last season.
“If we go to the USA, although prices have dropped, they are at slightly higher ranges than last year, currently at USD 6 per kilo and in Europe it is 6.1 Euros per kilo, which is equivalent to EUR 30.5 per 5-kilo box. This is the best average price that was given last week comparing the three major markets,” Quiroz added.
In China, hopes are pinned on the “Lantern Festival”, a celebration taking place on February 15 in the Asian country, which could allow for reactivation, as well as the Winter Olympic Games currently taking place, and which, although they do not constitute a demand pole for cherries in themselves, will keep the markets open.
“We have to be very expectant about what will happen this week because if the market clears of those volumes that had flavor problems like these Reginas and that are volumes that are in inventory, the truth is that we can think that the market can reactivate after Chinese New Year and we can have better prices, but everything remains to be seen (…), we all hope that the market will reactivate, but the customs clearance of containers is still very slow and the fruit is at the limit of its lifespan,” indicated the Director and Founder of IQonsulting.
Exports
During week 5, Chile exported 2,483 tons of cherries, equivalent to 496,600 5-kilo boxes, bringing the total to 355,465 tons so far this season (71 million 5-kilo boxes); this is 1.6 percent more than last year, which allows us to estimate that the season will end with figures very similar to those of the 2020-21 season.
“Exports for the week of 2017 were 46% to China, remember that in peak export weeks we had over 80% to China. 20% was sent to the USA, 12% to Korea, 2% to Taiwan, 10% to England, however, in the total exported to date, China continues to be the most important and has received a total of 88%, which is within the objectives that the Cherry Committee and many of the exporters had set, which is to reduce the participation in China. Last year, 92% went to China and now we have reached 88%, which is 4% less; we have to advance little by little because there is no market that can consume the amount that China consumes and we have to work on it,” explained Isabel Quiroz.
Last week there was 11% of unsold cherries, a figure that has now dropped to 9%; prices are expected to rebound, however, according to the Director and Founder of IQonsulting, Isabel Quiroz, if this scenario does not occur "We have to think about what happens after the Chinese New Year, how we should approach it and move on to other markets," the specialist concluded.
