China and Myanmar Resume Border Trade

According to local media, the Zhangfeng–Lweje border crossing between China and Myanmar resumed operations on Jan. 17.

On that day, a total of 15 trucks carrying bananas and sugarcane from Myanmar entered China. Because of the ongoing pandemic, the trucks were unloaded manually at a designated location by workers wearing protective gear. Assuming that operations continue to run smoothly, the number of trucks entering China from Myanmar via this crossing is expected to increase from 30 to 50 per day.

Myanmar’s Kachin State shares a border with China’s Yunnan province. The main border crossings for trade between the two countries are Zhangfeng–Lweje, Houqiao–Kan Paik Ti and Diantan–Pangwa. As a result of the pandemic, these crossings had been closed for more than six months. Although the Houqiao–Kan Paik Ti crossing was reopened on Dec. 17, 2021, the overall trade volume has remained low, with only a few dozen trucks passing through the crossing each day. The Diantan–Pangwa crossing is not expected to be reopened in the near future.

Alongside the reopening of China–Myanmar border crossings, the two countries continue to promote the use of Chinese yuan as the means of settling payments for border trade. On Jan. 11, 2022, an agreement was reached that allowed seven types of products exported from the Muse border port and 31 types of products imported into Myanmar to be settled in either Burmese kyat or Chinese yuan.

On Jan. 14, 2022, the Myanmar National Management Committee held a press conference to reiterate that in order to promote Sino-Myanmar trade, merchants are allowed to directly use both kyat and yuan for settlement. At the same time, for the development of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, border ports will be gradually reopened depending on the pandemic situation.

Image: Pixabay

This article was translated from Chinese. Read the original article.