From Jan.to Jul. 2020, China’s orange exports increased by 6.9% YOY, Asian Citrus (00073.HK) Resumed Trading Smoothly
Fresh orange is a common fruit that contains sugar, dietary fiber, vitamin B complex, vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, citric acid, pectin and other nutrients. Nowadays, During the COVID-19 epidemic, eating fresh oranges every day can enhance human health. According to CRI Report (元哲咨询), the world’s major orange producing countries include Brazil, the United States and China.
In 2020, the global and Chinese economies have been heavily hit by the COVID-19 epidemic, but certain industries have reversed this trend. According to CRI Report (元哲咨询) and China Customs, from January to July 2020, China’s export volume of fresh oranges reached 37,621 tons, a slight decrease over the same period in 2019, which was caused by the stagnant logistics. From Jan. to July, China’s export of fresh oranges reached US$68.61 million, with a year-on-year increase of 6.9%. The main reason for the rising in exports is the increase in average export prices. Asia Citrus Holdings Limited (00073.HK), listed in Hong Kong, is one of the major exporters of Chinese oranges. On the one hand, Asia Citrus has its own orchards; meanwhile, it uses a model of cooperation with farmers to buy fresh oranges, bananas, dragon fruits and other fruits and resell them after initial processing. On the one hand, with the improvement of the living standards of Chinese residents, the demand for high-quality fruits is also increasing. Therefore, China imports a large amount of oranges, such as SUNKIST, every year. Besides, oranges are divided into multiple varieties because the ripening time varies greatly. In order to fill the gap in the market, other countries also import large amounts of fresh oranges from China every year.
The major producing area of fresh oranges in China is Guangxi, because the climate, soil and other aspects are suitable for the growth of citrus fruits. In addition, fresh orange planting companies such as Asia Citrus have decades of planting experience, mature technology and cooperation models, and have a strong resistance to yellow dragon disease and natural disasters. China’s overall export of fresh oranges has been maintaining an upward trend. Due to the high quality of fresh oranges exported from China, the market positioning is relatively high. For Asia Citrus, the fresh orange business has a good market space. Asia Citrus’s orange business not only includes exports, but also gradually expanded its fruit distribution business in China. Its own brand is Xinyaqi (ROYALSTAR).
Asia Citrus is an outstanding company whose main business is fruit cultivation and distribution. It owns tens of thousands of acres of fresh orange planting base in Hepu, Guangxi. Guangxi is one of the important fruit producing areas in China. The fertile land, mild climate and superior natural conditions are conducive to the cultivation of oranges. At the same time, Guangxi is close to China’s west coast, relying on the inland, and close to Southeast Asia, which is conducive to the development of business in the ASEAN market with a population of 700 million. Asia Citrus was listed on the British AIM in 2005 and Hong Kong in 2009, and then suspended trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in September 2016. Trading resumed smoothly on September 1, 2020. The industry adviser of this resuming is CRI Report.
According to CRI Report, with the recovery and development of the global and Chinese economies, consumer demand for fruits will continue to rise, which will also promote the growth of Asia Citrus.
