For the first time in decades, the share of China’s workforce employed in raw materials industries has gone up – a consequence of a weak job market and a return of rural migrants to their homes.
Holding a small share of the world’s arable soil, as well as one of the planet’s largest populations, China has had to cultivate lands previously thought inhospitable to increase crop yields.
Officials from mainland China have proposed enhancing agricultural trade with Taiwan – a potential move greeted with interest by industry players – but doubts weigh heavy as overall relations move from bad to worse.