Changes of China's grain industry, state-owned grain depots and grain market after China's accession to WTO

Introduction: recently at the "WTO and China Grain Market Forum" in Zhengzhou, agricultural experts believe that China lacks the main body that can compete with foreign big grain merchants As the most extensive grain enterprise in China, grain depot is not so much an enterprise as an executive organ of government policies Foreign grain merchants believe that entering WTO is a win-win opportunity Relevant experts believe that the grain industry should be the last one in China that is both government and enterprise oriented and highly monopolized, eating both the national finance and the "big pot rice" of banks China's grain market is short of rational management subjects The main body of China's grain market is China's grain enterprises, which account for more than 90% of the trading volume of grain commodities, while other farmers, private enterprises (including collective, individual and private grain merchants) and various forms of joint-stock enterprises account for less than 10% "After China's accession to the WTO, China's agriculture will face two major challenges: one is the challenge of agricultural products to market opening, the other is the challenge of government management system," said Cheng Guoqiang, a researcher at the development research center of the State Council and a member of China's WTO agriculture negotiation group "At present, the direct investment of Cargill company, the world's largest grain enterprise, in China is gradually withdrawn We should be alert to the problem that foreign enterprises replace investment with trade after China's accession to the WTO," Cheng said As the most extensive main body of China's grain enterprises, several heads of grain depots said that they only know that foreign grain and large grain merchants will come in after China's accession to the WTO, but how to operate the state-owned grain depots in the future needs to be in accordance with the state's policies, and the grain sector has no right or ability to decide Mr Li, head of a grain depot in Henan Province, a major grain producer, complained: "the grain sector is like living in the gap between the plan and the market According to the current basic thinking of deepening the reform of the grain circulation system, the grain sector in the major grain producer province should purchase the surplus grain of farmers according to the protection price On the one hand, the grain depot should purchase the surplus grain of farmers according to the protection price On the other hand, it should purchase the surplus grain of farmers according to the protection price On sale In recent years, the supply of grain has exceeded the demand, the price of grain has fallen again and again, and it is difficult to sell at a favorable price After the grain is collected, it can't be sold at a favorable price, so it has to be piled up in the warehouse The phenomenon of grain aging is very serious " Li said that the government now encourages the diversification of grain business entities Processing enterprises and individual grain merchants can engage in grain purchase and sale business as long as they are recognized by grain departments and have business licenses In general, individual grain merchants can purchase at home, collect without limitation, collect without stop, pay in time, go with the collection, and get loose on moisture and impurities The grain sector has no advantage over these individual grain merchants Li said that the purchase of surplus grain at the protection price in recent years has not only protected the interests of farmers, but also increased the burden on the grain sector, and the local finance has been overwhelmed Now there is wheat in the warehouse a few years ago The cost price is more than 0.8 yuan per Jin How can we sell it at a favorable price? Therefore, he hoped that the country could adjust its sales policy, make high quality and high price, and respond flexibly to the market Mr Xu Lihuan, chief representative of Cargill company in Hong Kong, the world's largest grain merchant, said: "agriculture is a grass-roots and clay industry It's very difficult to defeat the clay industry We are a strong dragon, not a local snake." Mr Xu said Cargill has closed five factories in China because of losses At present, there are 14 enterprises in mainland China When asked why the company went bankrupt at a loss, Mr Xu said that improper appointment of personnel was one of the reasons "Agriculture is a low profit industry with a very low return on investment, but it is relatively stable," Xu said China's agricultural products are absolutely competitive, but the scale of Chinese enterprises is too small and lack of passion for competition With the economic growth and the improvement of people's living standards, China's grain enterprises have great room for growth Joining the WTO is a global two-way trade opportunity It depends on your understanding From a positive point of view, this is also an opportunity for China's agriculture to compete There should be a win-win situation through hard work " The impact of the influx of foreign grain traders on China's agriculture after China's accession to the WTO, Xu said: "from an international perspective, the proportion of China's agricultural population is on the high side Now it's about 80%, which needs to consume a lot of resources and energy, while the agricultural population of the United States and other developed countries only accounts for 2% - 5% Reducing the proportion of agricultural population and turning them to other industries are beneficial to economic development In recent years, China's grain production is relatively surplus, which has resulted in a certain degree of "grain prices hurt farmers", which is not cost-effective from the perspective of investment income I have seen a figure In a few decades, China's population will reach 1.6 billion, and then the trend of growth will stop According to China's current production capacity and level of biochemical science and technology, China's agriculture has no major problems, only a problem of population distribution " According to the requirements of the WTO agricultural agreement, after China's accession to the WTO, the grain market will face the following changes: first, to abolish the restrictions on the quantity of imports and to implement the system of tariff principal amount The tariff quota system shall be applied to major grain varieties such as wheat, corn, rice and oil Second, to eliminate any form of export subsidies This is undoubtedly a big challenge to China's grain export Third, the principle of general recognition of MFN treatment According to the WTO's most favored nation treatment, the most preferential terms reached with any member state are also extended to all Member States Fourth, we should emphasize the necessity of private enterprises In the agreement on agricultural cooperation between China and the United States, quotas should be allocated reasonably between state-owned import and export companies and private enterprises, and private enterprises should account for half of the rice tariff quotas This paves the way for private grain import and export enterprises, especially grain multinational companies, to seize the Chinese grain market, and at the same time, it gradually weakens the monopoly position of China's state-owned grain enterprises Fifth, the impact of low price grain on the domestic grain market According to statistics, the price of Japonica Rice in China is 40% higher than that in the international market, the price of wheat is 60% higher than that in the international market, the price of corn is 46%, and the price of soybean is 84.5% It is an indisputable fact that the price of international grain market is lower than that of domestic grain, which has a great resistance to domestic grain export Sixth, China will reduce tariffs on agricultural products from 21% of the current average tariff to 17% in 2004 Tariffs on wheat, corn, rice, soybean oil and other products outside the quota will also be reduced accordingly, which will undoubtedly increase grain imports Therefore, after China's accession to the WTO, the impact of wheat, corn, oil and grease on the domestic grain market is very strong, especially the impact of oil and grease on the domestic grain market will be greater.