Agri-trade deficit, grain output to drop

China's grain output is expected to decline by 1 percent this year, and its agricultural trade deficit will decrease to about $35 billion, according to a new book compiled by a government think tank.

This year's grain output will drop to about 610 million metric tons, considering the national adjustments in plantation structure, according to the Green Book of Rural Area (2016-17), released on Friday by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Rural Development Institute.

Last year, the grain output fell by 0.8 percent to 616.2 million tons, the first decline since 2004. However, 2016 was still a good harvest year, with the second-highest output on record. Before 2016, grain yields increased for 12 consecutive years, from 469.5 million tons in 2004 to 621.4 million tons in 2015.