GENEVA -- China has become the main outlet for illegally traded ivory, where growing demand is helped by a large and unregulated market, the UN conservation panel CITES said on Friday.

Despite a virtually continual ban since 1989, a new report shows that illegal trade in ivory is flourishing, driven not only by China but other Asian and African countries.

"Our analysis shows that since 1998 demand for ivory in China has dramatically increased," Tom Milliken, one of the report's authors, said in a statement.

"In fact, it is the single most important factor influencing the increasing trend," he added.

The findings are the first to be produced under a monitoring system for tracking illegal trade in elephant products (ETIS).

It was set up in 1997 by the parties to CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora) and traffic, a wildlife trade monitoring network.

ETIS reported that ivory seizures in terms of volume declined from 1989 to 1994 and remained stable at 1994 levels until 1998 but have been on the increase ever since.

China, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo and Thailand are the most frequent sources or destinations for large volumes of illegal ivory, largely because of poor law enforcement, AFP reported.

CITES officials said that more than half of all the illegally traded ivory seized in 1999 was destined for China. Although Beijing has clamped down at borders and ports, regulation of the domestic market remains weak, they said.

The findings will be presented to a conference of the parties to CITES in Santiago, Chile, on November 3-15.

"The statistical analysis indicates that illegal trade in ivory is directly correlated to the presence of large-scale, unregulated domestic ivory markets," Milliken said.

"Located in both Africa and Asia, these markets have become increasingly more active since 1996 and account for the greatest volume of ivory being seized throughout the world," he added. "If we want to stop elephant poaching, we must address these markets.