Myanmar lifts ban on some goods trading in border areas

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-10/16/content_10203455.htm

www.chinaview.cn 2008-10-16 11:50:53

YANGON, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar has lifted ban on some goods trading in the country's border areas with neighboring countries under a new policy of liberalizing the border trade, the local weekly 7-Day reported Thursday, quoting the Ministry of Commerce.　

Of the 32 items of export goods prohibited before, rubber, sesame, sugarcane, rice, garlic, onion, chili, turmeric have been re-granted for trading across border.


Of the banned import goods previously, apple, pear, grape, cherry, sweet tamarind, palm have been permitted again for buying in, with sweet honey orange being limited to import only during non-harvesting season.

According to official figures, agricultural produces were Myanmar's second largest exports (1.14 billion U.S. dollars) after natural gas in the fiscal year 2007-08. The others are gem products, forest products and marine products.　

Myanmar exported most to Asian countries and regions, having border trade with such neighboring countries as Thailand, China, India and Bangladesh.

Myanmar's foreign trade in 2007-08 stood at 8.851 billion U.S. dollars, of which the exports accounted for 6.043 billion dollars with agricultural produces contributing 18.8 percent of the total, while the imports represented 2.818 billion dollars registering a trade surplus of 3.225 billion dollars, statistics showed.

Of Myanmar's 11 leading exporting countries and region during the fiscal year, Thailand topped the list with 2.673 billion U.S. dollars, followed by India (719.45 million dollars), China's Hong Kong (649.43 million dollars), China (509.19 million dollars), Singapore (401 million dollars) and Japan (186.21 million dollars).　

Myanmar's main export goods are natural gas, agricultural, marine, forestry and gem products, while its key import goods are machinery, crude oil, edible oil, pharmaceutical products, cement, fertilizer and consumers goods.

Myanmar's principal crops are paddy, beans and pulses, oil crops, cotton, sugarcane and culinary crops.


Editor: Xia