According to Rabobank within three years China has shifted from being a net exporter of corn to being the fifth largest global importer resulting in changes to global trade patterns. In December 2013 China imported 820,968 metric tons of corn – triple the volume from a year earlier. Global corn prices in December fell to their lowest point since September 2010 – falling 34% in the second half of the year and ending 12% cheaper than domestic prices in China. In 2013 despite China importing 3.3 million tons of corn, government officials are warning that the country could face a corn deficit in coming years because of increased demand from the country’s livestock and processing industries. Currently 70% of China’s corn consumption is used by these two sectors. Traditionally China has mainly relied on the U.S. for its corn supplies. In 2010 and 2011 the U.S. provided 96% of China’s corn, and in 2012, 98%. However in recent months China has signed corn import agreements with Ukraine, Brazil, and Argentina and Laos and Myanmar are also becoming suppliers. In December 2013 the U.S. accounted for only 78% of China’s corn imports as the first shipments from Ukraine began arriving in China last year. In the future experts expect that the Black Sea region will play an increasingly important role in supplying China with corn.
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