China, which consumes about half the global lychee output, is projected to increase the import of the fruit this year to meet the local increasing demand, and Vietnam, with the lychee harvest season in full swing, has emerged as a main supplier.

The lychees harvest season is in full swing in Vietnam 

The International Trade Center (ITC) reported that China's import of fresh lychees rose by 4.64% annually in the 2015 - 2019 period. In the first four months of this year alone, China imported up to 173 tonnes of lychees worth US$190,000, up 77% in volume and up 288.7% in value over the same period last year.

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, China’s lychee imports from Vietnam fell considerably over the same period in 2019, while imports from Thailand increased sharply.

Statistics showed that the price of lychees imported from Thailand during the first four months of 2020 was 3.3 times higher than that of Vietnam. In April 2020, the price of Thai lychees was traded at US$1.17/kg, while that of Vietnamese just stood at US$0.35/kg.

China is a leading global consumer of lychees. Every year, it purchases approximately 1.55 million tonnes from abroad for local consumption, making up 50% of global output.

In addition to consuming fresh lychees, China uses the fruit to make jams, confectionery, medicine, juice and wine, therefore lychee is in short supply in the mainland.  

In early June, Vietnam allowed more than 300 Chinese dealers to enter and purchase lychees from Bac Giang province, one of the country’s lychee growers and producers.

With a high demand of lychees for local consumption, the import of Vietnamese lychees is expected to increase sharply in the coming weeks when the lychee harvest season is in full swing in Vietnam.