Major importing countries
Taiwan
Table: Taiwan’s import volume of
Thai tapioca starch, 1996-2001
| Year |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
| Import
volume |
279,736 |
318,464 |
212,676
|
305,970 |
310,884
|
259,254 |
Quantity: metric tons
Source: Department of Business Economics
Taiwan is currently the largest tapioca starch market for Thailand.
About 30 percent of total Thai starch exports go to Taiwan,
and this represents 95 percent of all Taiwanese starch imports.
At present, Taiwan imports 200,000-300,000 tons of starch from
Thailand each year. Thailand take the biggest share in this
market, which can be divided into three categories under the
same import tariff rate i.e. an import levy of 17 percent on
the entire imported quantity at NT$ 1,200 per ton. The three
categories of tapioca starch are as follows:
1.Tapioca flour
2.Tapioca starch and manioca starch (edible)
3.Tapioca starch and manioca starch (inedible)
Despite a 95 percent market share in Taiwan, Thai starch exporters
still encounter keen competition from Indonesia and the Philippines,
and compete with other substitutional flour grain such as maize,
wheat, yam etc. Other grain substitutes for tapioca flour/starch
are subject to a lower import duty of only 6-7 percent of total
import value, leading to a higher price level for tapioca starch.
| Export
market |
 |
|
