Chilean seafood exporters have secured more direct access to China as Beijing continues to open up trade lines as part of its response to the tariffs imposed by the United States.
An agreement signed recently by Chilean Minister of Economy, Development and Tourism José Ramón Valente and Chinese Minister of Customs Ni Yuefeng will pave the way for electronic certification of seafood imports into China. The deal will allow for more direct and faster movement of Chilean salmon shipments to Chinese buyers, according to Ni.
"[China] remains interested in maintaining and improving work processes to ensure the continuity of bilateral trade between the two countries,” Ni said.
Official export statistics from Chile show salmon shipments to China doubled year-on-year in the first half of 2018 to 24,000 metric tons. Ni said that figure had shot even higher thus far in the second half of 2018.
“Shipment of aquaculture products has increased by 60.6 percent, which is a brilliant result,” he said.
Chile counts China as its fourth-most important export market for seafood, with exports reaching USD 425.7 million (EUR 375.3 million) in 2018. Ramón Valente said that number should go even higher as a result of the new deals.
"Having access to the Chinese market for these products is of fundamental importance,” he said.
A separate agreement signed between the two countries will see China ease restrictions on imports of Chilean fish oil for human consumption. That will benefit 12 Chilean companies producing human-grade fish oil, according to Alicia Gallardo, the director of Sernapesca, Chile’s governmental body overseeing its fisheries and aquaculture sector.
"This is a historic milestone for the sector, since it is a long-awaited wish of the national producers,” Gallardo said.
The Chilean deals were among several China signed on the sidelines of the recent G20 meeting in Argentina, many of which were centered on increasing access into China for food imports from Latin American nations.
Chinese officials have also been busy working on other deals to increase the trade flow with other nations. In addition to pushing for a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership mega-deal (with most of the countries in the Asia-Pacific region), in the past month, China met Japan and Korea to discuss a three-way free trade agreement.
China has also started talks with New Zealand, Peru, and Singapore about an “upgrade” to their current FTAs. It has also entered a twelfth round of negotiations with Norway on an FTA, and last month concluded an FTA with the island nation of Mauritius.
Photo courtesy of Sernapesca
