The outbreak of Covid-19 had economic consequences for countries across the globe. Many countries saw their export trade reduced. The export of Chinese ginger, however, expanded because ginger has medicinal applications. People started paying more attention to ginger during the pandemic. After the initial lockdown in January and February, China began to resume regular trade operations in March. While other countries suffered from Covid-19, market demand for ginger grew, and China was one of the few countries able to supply ginger. That is why the export of Chinese ginger increased in volume and value in the first six months of 2020.
Looking at the export conditions over the entire year, although the export volume declined by 4.88% in comparison with the previous year, because the price is higher than it has been in years, still trade remained very active throughout the year. The decline in ginger export followed in the second half of 2020, mainly because the purchase price in production areas was high, but also because the European market has not yet recovered and their order volume remained small. Furthermore, while the export price was relatively low and the domestic price started rising when processing facilities finished their reserves, export companies stopped taking overseas orders and focused on the domestic market instead. The export volume consequently declined.
In addition, because there is a shortage of ships and shipping containers, which drives the shipping price up, this year the export volume is not likely to grow either.