Nanning (ANTARA) - January and February are the busiest months of the\nyear for fruit trader Huang Chunlian. In the run-up to the Spring\nFestival, or Chinese New Year, Huang receives numerous orders and\nenquiries for fruit, nuts and other delicacies imported from Association\nof Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.<\/p>\n
At her shop in Pingxiang, a city on the China-Vietnam border in the\nZhuang Autonomous Region of Guangxi, southern China, her phone buzzes\nconstantly with new messages as she handles orders from regular\ncustomers whilst uploading social media updates promoting gift packages\nof Thai Monthong durian and pomelo.<\/p>\n
The Spring Festival is China\u2019s most important family reunion occasion\nand a peak period for households to purchase premium fruit and nuts to\nentertain returning family members and visiting relatives. Imported\nfruit, including cherries from Chile and tropical fruit from ASEAN, have\njoined the shopping festivities during the celebration in recent\nyears.<\/p>\n
According to Li Lan, a resident of Nanning, the capital of Guangxi,\nimported fruit has become an essential part of her family\u2019s celebration\npreparations. \u201cThai pomelo is a must-have \u2014 some for ourselves and some\nas gifts when visiting relatives,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI used to buy from shops. This year I joined several group chats to\npurchase fruit collectively,\u201d she added, noting that ordering via online\nplatforms made it easier to compare prices and quality whilst saving\ntime.<\/p>\n
China is one of the world\u2019s largest fruit consumer markets. Data\nshows that in 2025, China imported 9.03 million tonnes of fruit worth\n18.94 billion US dollars, up 17.5 per cent and 6.7 per cent\nrespectively.<\/p>\n
Importers in Guangxi, located close to Southeast Asia, directly feel\nthe surge in demand for ASEAN fruit ahead of the festival. Ma Chengyi,\ngeneral manager of Guangxi Ningming Tianze Customs Broker Co., Ltd.,\nsaid his company had imported more than 100 truckloads of ASEAN fruit\nthrough Aidian Port since January, with cargo values exceeding 45\nmillion yuan (1 yuan = Rp2,437) or approximately 6.48 million US dollars\n(1 US dollar = Rp16,826), a 63 per cent jump from the previous year.<\/p>\n
\u201cJanuary is not durian harvest season, but we still imported around\n200 containers of durian and other fruit last month, compared with only\ndozens of containers during the same period last year,\u201d said Wu Mingzhe,\nmanager of Guangxi Asia Global International Freight Co., Ltd.<\/p>\n
Ma and Wu attributed their business surge to China\u2019s growing interest\nin ASEAN fruit and faster customs clearance processes.<\/p>\n
Also in Guangxi, Qinzhou Port has expanded maritime routes connecting\nChina with major fruit-producing areas in Southeast Asia, including\nThailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. In 2025, the port operated 44 ASEAN\nshipping routes, providing additional fruit import channels beyond\noverland border crossings.<\/p>\n
Durian accounts for a large share of these imports. Last year, China\nimported fresh durian worth 7.49 billion US dollars, up 7.1 per cent\ncompared with the previous year, whilst import volumes surged nearly 20\nper cent to 1.87 million tonnes. Thailand and Vietnam are the main\ndurian suppliers.<\/p>\n
At Guangxi\u2019s border ports, the main gateway for ASEAN agricultural\nproducts entering China, durian, mangosteen and other fresh fruit arrive\nby truck and pass through express customs lanes to markets across China\nin a seasonal surge that traders have dubbed the \u201csweet travel\nrush\u201d.<\/p>\n
Fan Lihui, an official from the border inspection department at\nFriendship Pass, said the latest inspection system had cut inspection\ntimes to approximately 15 seconds per truck, improving efficiency by\naround 75 per cent.<\/p>\n
\u201cJackfruit picked in Tien Giang Province, Vietnam, in the morning can\narrive at fruit markets in Nanning by the afternoon and then be\ndispatched across China,\u201d Fan said, adding that digital platforms now\nenable companies to submit customs declarations remotely, eliminating\nthe need for paper documents.<\/p>\n
\u201cChinese consumers\u2019 growing preference for fresher, higher-quality\nimported food is transforming holiday shopping patterns and supporting\nthe sustained growth of ASEAN fruit imports,\u201d said Wu Mingzhe.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/chinas-spring-festival-drives-demand-for-asean-fruit-1771293571", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }