DURIANS have entered their best season, and orders for the “stinky” fruit in China began to soar in late April, driving its imports from Southeast Asia, its main producing area. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, the world’s largest free trade deal to date that took effect Jan. 1, 2022, has further boosted its sales this year. The RCEP countries account for roughly 30% of the world’s gross domestic product and population. Over 90% of trade in goods among approved member states will gradually be tariff-free. In 2021, China’s import volume of fresh durians was four times that of 2017. In Guangxi, more investment is being poured into infrastructure and cold-chain logistics to facilitate cross-border fresh fruit trade. Chinese consumers have strong purchasing power and a massive demand for high-quality products, noted Benjamas Tanvetyanont, Thai consul-general in Nanning. Apart from Thai durians, durians from Malaysia are also gaining in popularity in China. Chinese and Malaysian enterprises have recently signed 11 agreements to promote investment and strategic cooperation in cross-border trade, among which the trade of durians has become the focus of attention. Malaysian Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Lim Ban Hong said that the RCEP would bring considerable cooperation opportunities to enterprises from both Guangxi and Malaysia. (Xinhua) | 