SANTIAGO, Chile, Nov. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Between November 1st and 3rd, more than thirty countries will come together to offer the best of their seafood products at the fair, China Fisheries & Seafood Exposition 2011 that will be held in the city of Qingdao. Each year this event brings together more than 20,000 visitors who are interested in this field from more than 70 countries. Because of its own exportable products, Chile will not remain on the sidelines of one of the largest and most important fairs in Asia, and will have a pavilion of its own in Hall 2 No B-1508, B-138 and B-139 at the Qingdao International Convention Centre.
Geographically, Chile is a neighbor to the west more than 4,000 kilometers of longitude across the Pacific Ocean, which turns out to be a major comparative advantage when it comes to seafood products. The ample variety of shellfish and fish along its coasts, as well as Chile's highly developed industry, will be Chile's calling card at this event. These factors are even more to the point in light of the stable relations between China and Chile based on the Free Trade Treaty (TLC) signed between the two countries, which took effect on October 1, 2006.
As a result of this trade agreement, consensus was achieved for an immediate elimination of tariffs on 92% of the exports from Chile to China, which took effect on the first day the agreement entered into force, with other tariff eliminations set for 1, 2, 5 and 10 years after 2006. Among the Chilean products for which China has authorized an immediate elimination of tariffs, as well as additional eliminations in 2 or 5 years, which counts as more items benefited by the TLC, notable are garden vegetables, fish oils, smoked salmon, fresh cherries, peaches, copper ore, refined copper and chemical wood paste. The products that are highly sensitive for China, such as fresh salmon, grapes, apples, kiwi and wines, shall become tariff exempt in 10 years, that is, as of January 1, 2015, the customs duties for these items shall be zero.
Thus, for example, salmon and trout are among the twenty principal products exported to China in 2010, adding up to US$ 53 million, and if they are measured by the classification of non-traditional products, they rank among the five top products after fresh fruit, wine, and potassium chloride.
It should be noted that at the 16th edition of the International China Fisheries & Seafood Exposition, Chile will present a wide offering of seafood products at the Chilean pavilion, where there will also be representatives participating from nine companies in the field, with such products as: salmon, trout, king crab, snow crab, haddock, cuttlefish, toothfish, red abalone, sea urchins, clams, navajuela (Ensis Macha),abalone,mackerel,oysters,crayfishandChilean blue mussels.
Chile and China in figures
The commercial activity between China and Chile is chiefly characterized by the volume of the flow. In 2010 US$ 16,791 million were exported to China, while imports from China added up to US$ 8,296 million. The behavior of exports and imports allow for a trade balance of US$ 8,423 million, while the volume of trade came to US$ 25,015 million, representing an increase of 47.1% in relation to the same period in 2009.
Although the strongest component of Chile's exports to China is the mining sector, with 86.6% in 2010, agriculture has also been exhibiting sustained growth in terms of demand. In 2009, the sector exported US$130 million, in 2010 the amount increased by 37.9% and reached US$180 million, exhibiting the most significant positive variation in non-mining export areas. Within this division, extractive fishing showed an increase of 47.7% during the same period, establishing itself as the subsector in second place in terms of demand after silviculture, which led the list with 142.7%.
Chile's participation at the China Fisheries & Seafood Exposition 2011 is a major opportunity to strengthen the international trade of Chilean seafood products, considering that it is one of the most important events in Asia. Chilean businessmen hope to be able to establish commercial contacts at an international level, as well as to make known their products and services on a worldwide scale, while obtaining information about new technology used in the seafood industry.
