Corn Imports Peaked in July  

Corn imports saw a 56-fold increase to 282,000 tons during the first seven months of this year, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture.

Playing down fears that further imports will trigger price hikes, the experts said the situation will improve as the autumn harvest is just round the corner.

Corn imports peaked in July, with the nation importing as much as 194,000 tons compared with 65,000 tons in June. Exports of corn, however, remained relatively stable at 13,000 tons in July compared with 9,000 tons in June.

Import surges were also seen in other commodities like cotton and wheat. Cotton imports rose by 97.6 percent to 1.71 million tons for the seven-month period, while wheat imports doubled to 1.02 million tons.

Propelled by the import surges, China's agricultural trade deficit rose by 61.9 percent to $13.05 billion for the seven-month period, the ministry said.