(ECNS) -- China’s coffee retail market is worth more than 200 billion yuan ($29.7 billion) annually and is growing at about 20% a year, Zhang Hong, president of the Asian Coffee Association, said at the 2026 Hainan International Coffee Expo in Haikou.

Hainan’s free trade policies could offer global coffee suppliers a new route into the Chinese market, Zhang said.

Official trade data point to rising demand. China rose from Ethiopia’s seventh-largest coffee export market two years ago to its third-largest in the 2025-2026 fiscal year, behind only Saudi Arabia and Germany. Ethiopia shipped 47,836 metric tons of coffee worth $347 million to China during the period, up about 40% in volume and 58% in value.

China's imports of Colombian coffee have also risen by about 105% over the past four years.

Most coffee entering China currently comes through eastern ports such as Shanghai. Since 2025, unroasted coffee has been included in the Hainan Free Trade Port's zero-tariff list for raw and auxiliary materials.

Under the policy, eligible businesses can import green coffee beans free of import tariffs, value‑added tax on imports and consumption tax. Eligible products processed in Hainan with at least 30% value added can also enter the Chinese mainland free of import tariffs.

(By Intern Yang Hongran, Zhang Dongfang)