Chinese exporters look to
domestic market
Xinhua
Guangzhou
(China), Oct 20 (Xinhua) Chinese exporters, faced with falling
foreign orders amid global economic slowdown, are diverting
their attention to domestic markets.
Qiao
Guan, board chairman of the Jiangsu Hotwind Sauna Equipment,
said his company is planning to divert some of the business
from abroad to the domestic market.
The
company's sales in the United States, which accounted for
about 30 percent of its total exports, had dropped by more
than 20 percent this year, Qiao said.
He
hoped the local sales could compensate the decreasing orders
in the foreign market.
"We
have completed research on the domestic market, which shows
some exported goods are affordable and have good sales prospects
in the local market," he said.
The
Himin Solar Energy Group, based in east China's Shandong province,
produces solar water heaters that are sold both at home and
abroad. Xue Xinwen, head of the firm's international trade
department, said the company had been losing orders as some
Western countries cancelled subsidies on environment-friendly
imports.
"We
have sent more staff to market our products to local infrastructure
authorities and companies," he said.
"Domestic
consumption has been greatly boosted by a robustly growing
economy, creating positive situations for exporters to go
local," he said.
But
the readjustment can be difficult.
Li
Jianlan, a worker with Wanji Plumbing Materials Co. Ltd, based
in Ningbo, said an exclusive exporter like her company lacked
channels and brand loyalty in the domestic market.
"These
are two different kinds of markets, and it takes a lot of
work to be familiar with the ways business is done with local
buyers," she said.
Some
goods that are made for export are deemed too expensive for
Chinese buyers.
Huang
Yan, general manager of the L-bright Export Manufacture Corporation,
said it had been very difficult to sell its products to domestic
buyers as they lacked a price advantage.
Local
governments, aware of the trend, are taking action to encourage
the conversions. Guangdong province, the country's major exporting
base, issued a notice in June, ordering local quality inspection
authorities to provide needed technical assistance to exporters.
Indo-Asian
News Service
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