The fall in the value of the US dollar has encouraged Chilean fruit exporters to ship larger volumes to the European market where currencies are more robust, according to a report in The Santiago Times.
Chilean fruit exports to Europe rose by 12 per cent last season, partly due to the weak US dollar, the report said, while volumes to the US fell by 10 per cent in comparison.
Sales grew by 9.5 per cent in continental Europe, by 4 per cent in the UK and by an impressive 67 per cent in Russia, according to Chilean fruit consultancy Decofrut.
While the US remains Chile’s leading export destination for fresh fruit, this year Decofrut said the market represents just 41 per cent of Chile’s total fruit exports – down from 45 per cent in 2007.
“People want to export to markets with a strong and stable currency,” said Decofrut analyst María Victoria Núñez. “Russia, for example, is a country that absorbs a lot of volume.”
Meanwhile, Ms Núñez added that the 2007/08 season was “atypical” for Chile since overall exports fell by 1.2 per cent.
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