In March, the garlic in the cold storage recovered, but the price increase was not obvious, and the market still fluctuated at a low price throughout the month. With the approaching time of new garlic, the old garlic is eager to destock, and the pressure of market supply cannot be underestimated. At the same time, quality problems such as frozen cloves, softening, and sprouting of garlic in the warehouse are also emerging one after another. Under the influence of the epidemic, domestic market demand has contracted. From an overall perspective, prices are still at a low level this month.
In March 2022, China's garlic exports totaled 191,900 tons, with a total export value of $219.7083 million. Among them, the quantity of fresh or refrigerated garlic totaled about 164,200 tons, a year-on-year increase of about 27.40% compared with the export volume of 128,900 tons in the same period last year; The total export value was US$148.7187 million, an increase of about 10.69% compared with the export value of US$134.3599 million in the same period last year.
In terms of countries, in March 2022, the top ten countries/regions for China's fresh or refrigerated garlic exports were: Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, and Senegal.
Overall, by comparing the total export volume in March from 2009 to 2022, the export volume of fresh or refrigerated garlic in March 2022 reached a record high in the same period, with a total volume of about 164,200 tons, followed by the export volume in March 2020. The total amount is about 163,000 tons.
This is an increase of about 94,300 tons compared to February exports and an increase of about 35,300 tons compared to the same period last year. In March, it was mainly exported to Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates, and other regions, of which Indonesia's export volume increased by about 20,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 81%.
The export unit price of garlic in March was US$905.63/ton, a year-on-year decrease of about 13.12% compared with the export unit price of US$1,042.37/ton in the same period last year; the quantity of fresh or chilled garlic totaled about 164,200 tons, an increase of about 27.40% compared with the export volume of 128,900 tons in the same period last year.
Overall, the total garlic export in the first quarter of 2022 was 373,000 tons, an increase of about 0.5% compared with the first quarter of 2021, and China's garlic exports showed good momentum in the first quarter.