China-Chile trade and economic cooperation enters fast lane

China became Chile's second largest fruit importer in 2013; 98% of the blueberries, 51% of the apples and 45% of the grapes grown in Chile are exported to China. According to the Chilean Fruit Exporters Association, the Chilean Cherry Commission and official data, Asia is since February 2015 the biggest export market for Chile, accounting for 82.7 % of total exports, of which 96% has China as a destination.

Also, more and more Chinese put Chilean wine on their tables. In the first half of this year, the Chilean bulk wine exports to China ranked first, amounting to more than 19 million US Dollars. While the exports to Australia, the second export destination for Chilean bulk wine, only amounted up to 3,850,000 US Dollars.

"For five years our winery had an average of a 20% annual growth rate in the Chinese market. In the past two years, we achieved an annual growth rate of 100%. China has become the fasted growing market for Ganlu winery. In line with the growth rate of this market, we estimate that the export of Ganlu to China can be more than 1.5 million boxes in 2018,"� said Chilean winery manager Cristian Chile.