According to figures just published by Fonterra, the New Zealand dairy exporter, China's imports of dairy products fell 12.6 per cent in September, year on year (see first chart). This was the first time imports fell this year. Meanwhile, Fonterra adds, China's whole milk powder imports dropped by 50 per cent in September.
China buys roughly two-thirds of world trade in dry whole milk powder and over a third of global shipments of fresh milk. Its imports are usually high because consumers distrust domestic producers after multiple health scandals.
But the nation's buyers are importing less after stocking up heavily to take advantage of falling dairy prices (see second chart), which have been declining, in part, because the European Union will lift output quotas next year.