cargo
VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times/Asia News Network): “The prices of durian in Kunming this year have been lowered, indeed,” said Deng Xiaotian from a trade company in Kunming, southwest China’s Yunnan province, after unloading the last box of Monthong durians and stocktaking.
Many citizens in Kunming have found the drop in durian prices in summer this year, and the lowest price was less than 40 yuan (US$5.74) per kilogram. In mid-December, Monthong durians were sold at around 58 yuan per kilogramme in supermarkets in the city, about 10 yuan cheaper from a year ago.
Deng attributed the lowered prices to the expanded durian production in Thailand and the China-Laos Railway.
He said fruits were imported from Thailand via sea routes and highways in the past. After the opening of the China-Laos Railway, Thai durians are shipped to Vientiane, Laos first and then enter China via the railway, he said, adding that cross-border railway cold-chain transportation has provided Chinese fruit dealers with a brand-new channel.
“Trains carry lots of cargo and run fast, and they won’t be affected by the weather and come with less risks. Therefore, railway lowers our cost,” Deng told People’s Daily.
According to him, his company imported over 50 cold-chain containers of durians from Thailand via the China-Laos Railway this year, which totalled more than 1,000 tonnes.
Over the past year since the railway was put into service, passenger and cargo companies have seen a steady increase in business.
As of Dec 2, the railway had transported 11.2 million tonnes of cargo and carried 8.5 million passengers. Over,3,000 cross-border trips had been made, transporting cargo worth over 13 billion yuan.
