2019/1/15 – CRI Report

Research Report on Timber Import in China, 2019-2023

admin — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 07:58:12 +0000

Description
China is the second largest timber consumer in the world. With the development of China’s economy, there is a growing demand for timber from industries of construction, papermaking and furniture manufacturing. However, the timber production grows slowly in China as restricted by timber resources and the rising costs of logging. In Jan. 1, 2017, the Chinese government announced the prohibition on commercial cutting of natural forests. It is estimated that the timber production in China will shrink in the next few years.
From 2013 to 2017, the apparent consumption of timber in China increased by nearly 18% to 192.5 million cubic meters. However, the decrease in the production volume pushed up the import volume. As a result, China’s reliance on timber imports rose from 48.4% in 2013 to 56.4% in 2017, and is expected to keep growing in the next few years. In 2017, the import volume of timber in China reached about 108.5 million cubic meters, registering a YOY growth of 16.1%. Softwoods and hardwoods account for about 68% and 32% respectively of China’s timber imports. And as labor costs in China are rising, sawn timber is taking up a larger proportion of China’s timber imports. The ratio of sawn timber imports to log imports increased from 1:4 in 2007 to 2:3 in 2017.

Wood Preservatives Market: By Formulation (Water-Based, Oil-Based and Solvent-Based); By Application (Residential, Commercial and Industrial); and Region – Analysis of Market Size, Share & Trends for 2014 – 2019 and Forecasts to 2030
According to CRI, in 2017, Russia, the U.S., New Zealand and Canada, the four largest sources of China’s timber imports, provided 64% of the total import volume of timber in China. In particular, Russia and the U.S. provided about 31% and nearly 10% respectively of the total timber imports. On Aug. 3, 2018, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced a 5% to 25% tariff increase on U.S. exports worth USD 60 billion, including a 25% tariff increase on U.S. timber. Evidently, the Sino-U.S. trade war will have certain impact on China’s timber import.
The domestic supply of merchantable timber has been contracting, and China’s reliance on timber imports has exceeded 50% since the Chinese government announced the prohibition on commercial cutting of natural forests in 2017.It is expected that the international timber prices will show an upward trend in the next few years as the import volume of timber keeps rising in China. Some Chinese enterprises have begun to invest in the forestry industry in other countries, mainly Russia, to ensure stable and adequate supply of timber. By the end of 2018, more than 100 Chinese enterprises had invested in Russia’s forestry industry with a total of over USD 2 billion. And the figures are expected to grow further. The Chinese government has few restrictions on timber import. Therefore, the Chinese market will provide global forestry enterprises with numerous opportunities in the next few years.

Topics Covered:
– Supply of and demand for timber in China
– Timber import in China
– China’s reliance on timber imports
– Major factors influencing timber import in China
– Analysis on the types, volume, sources and prices of China’s timber imports
– Prospect of timber import in China from 2019 to 2023

The post Research Report on Timber Import in China, 2019-2023 first appeared on CRI Report.

Research Report on Coal Import in China, 2019-2023

admin — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 07:58:06 +0000

Description
China is the largest coal producer and consumer. The huge coal consumption in China encourages foreign coal producers to expand their production capacity. In addition, overseas coal mines are mostly opencast ones, which makes it easy to increase production. However, coal production in China is restricted by environmental protection policies and other factors. In recent years, some small and medium-sized coal mines had to cut or even stop production because their environmental protection facilities failed to meet standards. Meanwhile, the rising mining costs have made the coal prices in China higher than the international coal prices. For example, in 2017, the average price of imported steam coal was only 429 CNY/ton, about 12% lower than that of domestic steam coal.
According to CRI’s analysis, the logistics costs for imported coal are very low because imported coal mostly enters China by sea. While the logistics costs for domestic coal are far higher because the prices of refined oil are more expensive in China than in other parts of the world, and the expressway tolls are excessively high. Therefore, China imports a large quantity of coal every year. In 2017, the import volume of coal in China was about 270.9 million tons, up by 6% from 2016.
Coal imports are classified into anthracite, coking coal, other coal, other bituminous coal and lignite. The first three types of coal are used for thermal power generation and collectively called as steam coal in China. China’s coal imports are dominated by steam coal that has a low average price. For example, in 2017, steam coal imports reached about 188.14 million tons, accounting for about 69.4% of China’s coal imports. As the major sources of China’s coal imports, in 2017, Indonesia, Australia, Mongolia and Russia exported 251 million tons of coal in total to China, contributing about 93% to the import volume of coal in China. Indonesia, the largest source of China’s coal imports, exported about 109 million tons of coal to China in 2017, accounting for 40.2% of the import volume of coal in China.
According to CRI, coal import can bring the following benefits to China: (1) Appropriate amount of coal imports can suppress the price fluctuations and speculation on China’s coal market so that the downstream industries can maintain stable production and operation; and (2) the import of high-quality coking coal that China lacks can promote the development of China’s coke and metal smelting industries.
However, the Chinese government issues policies to restrict coal import from time to time, worrying that a large quantity of coal imports will harm the interests of domestic coal mining industry. For example, from Jul. 1, 2017, according to the Interim Measures for Administration of Quality of Commercial Coal, the ports administered by province-level governments stopped approving coal import. On Jan. 9, 2018, the National Energy Administration held talks with major power enterprises on assessing power plants’ use of imported coal and the supply of coal for power generation. At the beginning of Apr.2018, the Customs of China’s major coal importing provinces such as Fujian, Guangdong and Zhejiang began to restrict coal import.
It is expected by CRI that the import volume of coal in China will continue to grow from 2019 to 2023 but the growth rate may be limited. On one hand, imported coal can stabilize the coal prices in China and improve the operation of the major downstream industries of coal. On the other hand, a large quantity of coal imports will certainly impact China’s coal mining industry. Therefore, the Chinese government will issue policies to regulate and rationalize coal imports.

Topics Covered:
– China’s major policies on coal import
– Coal import in China
– Comparison of prices of domestic and imported coal in China
– Major sources of China’s coal imports
– Major factors influencing coal import in China
– Forecast on coal import in China from 2019 to 2023

The post Research Report on Coal Import in China, 2019-2023 first appeared on CRI Report.

Research Report on Paddy and Rice Import in China, 2019-2023

admin — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 07:58:00 +0000

Description
China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of paddy and rice. Once a net exporter of paddy and rice, China became a net rice importer in 2011, and the world’s largest rice importer in 2012. In 2017, it imported 4.03 million tons of paddy and rice. The reasons why China shifted from a traditional rice exporter into the world’s largest rice importer include: (1) Farming brings little income in China. With the growing economy and rising urbanization level, many rural laborers flow to cities and towns instead of being engaged in agriculture, which leads to sluggish growth in agricultural output; and (2) the prices of domestically grown rice are much higher than those of imported rice. China’s rice imports are mainly mid-and low-end rice from Vietnam and Thailand. Their prices are only 80% of those of domestically grown rice at the same quality levels or lower.
The Chinese government implements tariff rate quota administration for paddy and rice. The annual quota for 2012 to 2019 is 5.32 million tons. If an importer can obtain the quota, it will enjoy very low import tariffs. However, many private grain traders and food processing enterprises are ineligible for the quota. To reduce costs, they purchase smuggled rice. It is reported that smuggled rice mainly comes from Thailand and Burma via Yunnan and Guangxi, with Nanning city of Guangxi seeing the most rampant rice smuggling in China. In 2017, China Customs handled 57 cases of rice smuggling that involved 394,400 tons of rice. The total value of the involved rice exceeded USD 200 million. It is estimated that at least 2 million tons of rice worth more than USD 1 billion are smuggled to China every year.
As China’s net annual population growth exceeds10 million, the demand for paddy and rice will keep growing in the coming years. While the profitability of rice planting is decreasing as the prices of pesticides, chemical fertilizers, energy and other production factors keep rising. A rural laborer can get a monthly pay of CNY 3,000 (USD 435) or more from an urban job. If he/she works as a farmer in his/her hometown, he/she can hardly earn USD 300 per month, let alone that farming presents heavier workloads. It is expected that as more rural laborers migrate to cities, the number of farmers will keep declining, and the production of main agricultural products including paddy will see slow growth or even negative growth in the coming years. In this context, China will have to import more paddy and rice.
With about 125.84 million tons of rice yields, China’s reliance on rice imports was about 3.2% in 2017. Considering the smuggled rice, the reliance on foreign rice actually exceeded 5%. It is expected that more foreign paddy and rice will enter China in the coming years. And intensifying smuggling may drag down the import volume, which presents huge opportunities to global rice exporters.

Topics Covered:
– Major factors influencing paddy and rice import in China
– Analysis on supply for and demand of paddy and rice in China
– Import volumes of paddy and rice in China
– Import prices of rice in China
– Major sources of China’s rice imports
– Analysis on rice smuggling to China
– Prospect of paddy and rice import in China from 2019 to 2023

The post Research Report on Paddy and Rice Import in China, 2019-2023 first appeared on CRI Report.

Investigation Report on China’s Recombinant Human Interferon α2b Market, 2018-2022

admin — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 07:57:58 +0000

Description
An interferon is a group of host-specific glycoproteins secreted by cells in response to virus infections or other factors. As a cytokine, it can defend against a wide variety of viruses by stimulating the synthesis of new effector proteins in interaction with the receptors on uninfected cells though it cannot directly kill or inhibit the viruses in cells. Besides, it can achieve immunoregulation and anti-cancer effects by enhancing the viability of lymphocytes, macrophages and natural killer cells.
In 1986, Intron A, the world’s first Recombinant Human Interferon α2b, was launched by Schering Plough that was later acquired by MSD, and approved by the FDA to be used for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B. In 1997, Tianjin Sinobioway Biomedicine Co., Ltd.’s Recombinant Human Interferon α2b was approved to be sold in China, followed by the counterparts of Anhui Anke Biotechnology (Group) Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Beisheng Medicine Industry Hansheng Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and Schering-Plough that were approved in 1998, 1999 and 2007 respectively.
Recombinant Human Interferon α2b has been approved by the China Food and Drug Administration to be sold in the dosage forms of freeze-dried powder injection, injection, suppository, cream (ointment), eye drops, etc. The main indications include acute and chronic viral hepatitis infections (hepatitis B and hepatitis C), condyloma acuminatum, hairy cell leukemia, etc. and vary among dosage forms.
CRI estimates that by the end of 2018, more than 90 million people in China are infected with hepatitis B virus and 8 million carry hepatitis C virus. With the increasing incidence of herpes, 80%-90% of the Chinese population are infected with herpes zoster virus, and 30% of the infected may develop chickenpox, and the rest 70% will be attacked by herpes zoster when they are weak. Furthermore, over 40% of married women in China are suffering from cervical erosion.
According to CRI’s market research, the sales value of Recombinant Human Interferon α2b showed an upward trend after the drug was launched in China, reaching about CNY 271 million in 2017. The injections, capsules and gels take up a large market share, with Shanghai Huaxin High Biotechnology Inc., Zhaoke Pharmaceutical (Hefei) Co. Ltd. and Schering-Plough as the top market players by sales value.

Topics Covered:
– Status of China’s Recombinant Human Interferon α2b market
– Major manufacturers of Recombinant Human Interferon α2b in China
– Prices of Recombinant Human Interferon α2b in China
– Major factors influencing development of Recombinant Human Interferon α2b in China
– Prospect of China’s Recombinant Human Interferon α2b market from 2018 to 2022

The post Investigation Report on China’s Recombinant Human Interferon α2b Market, 2018-2022 first appeared on CRI Report.

Research Report on Scrap Metal Import in China, 2019-2023

admin — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 07:57:57 +0000

Description
Since China joined the WTO, demand for metallic materials in China has been rising with the economic development. In addition, China also imports a large quantity of scrap metal every year. In 2017, China’s scrap metal imports reached 8.07 million tons, or USD 13,244 million in value. China has been the world’s largest importer of scrap metals for many years in a row.
The import of scrap non-ferrous metals can cut raw material costs, save natural resources, and reduce cultivated land occupation and pollutant emissions (including solid waste and greenhouse gas emissions) caused by mining. For example, copper concentrate has an average grade of 28% to 30%, and contains 70% unrecyclable solid waste. While copper scrap contains less than 2% unrecyclable solid waste, and can also provide recyclable steel scrap and waste plastics. Obviously, importing scrap metal saves more resources and is more environmentally friendly than exploiting copper mines or importing copper concentrate.
In China, scrap metal imports include restricted scrap imports represented by stainless steel scrap, tungsten scrap and magnesium scrap as well as non-restricted ones represented by gold scrap, platinum scrap and nickel scrap. Besides, scrap hardware, electrical products, motors and wires that contain steel scrap, copper scrap and aluminum scrap are also subject to import restriction. China has the strictest supervision system and measures on scrap metal import in the world. Both foreign suppliers and domestic consignees need to be certified. And all the scrap metal imports will be inspected and classified upon arrival, with the allowed unrecyclable solid waste no more than 2%. Meanwhile, with the rising costs of labor, land, energy resources and other production factors, China is losing the comparative advantages of importing non-ferrous metals.
According to CRI, China’s scrap metal imports are dominated by copper scrap, steel scrap and aluminum scrap. In 2017, the imported copper scrap in China reached about 3.56 million tons while the recycled copper scrap amounted to only about 2 million tons, representing 64% reliance on copper scrap imports; the imported steel scrap reached about 2.32 million tons while the recycled steel scrap exceeded 100 million tons, representing less than 2% reliance on steel scrap imports; the imported aluminum scrap reached about 2.17 million tons, and the recycled aluminum scrap amounted to about 5 million tons, representing about 30.3% reliance on aluminum scrap imports. In 2017, the average price of imported aluminum scrap was about 1,303 USD/ton, which was only about 75% of that of domestic aluminum scrap; the average import price of copper scrap was about 2,571 USD/ton, which was only 60% of that of domestic copper scrap. Therefore, Chinese metal smelters can significantly lower their production costs by importing copper scrap and aluminum scrap.
In 2017, the U.S. directly provided 15% of China’s copper scrap imports and 28.5% of the aluminum scrap imports. Given that part of scrap metal imports from the Hong Kong actually came from the U.S., the proportions should be higher. If the Sino-U.S. trade war continues, China’s import of scrap metals, especially the import of copper scrap and aluminum scrap, will be adversely affected.
As China lacks metal mineral resources, it still needs to import a large quantity of scrap metal, especially copper scrap and aluminum scrap from 2019 to 2023. If the trade tensions between China and the U.S. subsides, the import volume of scrap metals in China will keep rising. Otherwise, it will probably see an ongoing contraction.

Topics Covered:
– Major factors influencing scrap metal import in China
– Overview of scrap metal import in China
– China’s reliance on scrap metal imports
– Major sources of China’s scrap metal imports
– Prices of domestic and imported scrap metals in China
– Prospect of scrap metal import in China from 2019 to 2023

The post Research Report on Scrap Metal Import in China, 2019-2023 first appeared on CRI Report.