|
BEIJING, Nov. 1 -- The textile and garment export situation, in particular
with the US, was not looking healthy in the 98th session of China Export
Commodities Fair (CECF), according to statistics published by China's Ministry
of Commerce (MOFCOM).
The ministry said contracte
d garment exports stood at US$2.5 billion, down
13.8 per cent from the 96th session last Autumn; contracted textile exports
reached US$2.2 billion, up 2.2 per cent from last Autumn.
However, US visitors to the textile section declined sharply and contracts
with US buyers dropped 38.3 per cent from the 96th session.
CECF, the largest export exhibition of China, used to attract contracts by
foreign buyers from all over the world, who placed both short-term orders for
the coming months and long-term ones for the coming year.
Cao Xinyu, vice-chairman of China's Chamber of Commerce for the Import and
Export of Textiles, said that the unclear prospects of Sino-US textile conflicts
were to blame for the decline.
"There are far fewer US visitors than expected because of the trade
frictions," he said.
After the latest round of bilateral talks broke down in Beijing just before
the CECF, the two sides have not scheduled a time for a new talks.
However, Cao said, the agreement made on textile trade between China and
the European Union ruled out the largest uncertainty in Sino-EU textile trade.
The agreement was reached in June and was amended in September.
As China and the United States failed to settle frictions, both importers
and exporters are cautious about making orders in the next session of CECF.
"We had no visitors from the United States and only a few from the European
Union," said Xu Huimin, an official with Weihai Jiaobo Trading Co Ltd, a company
in East China's Shandong Province, which specialized in manufacturing pyjamas.
She said that it is a big blow to the company's exports for next year, as
both are major markets of the company.
David Orens is one of the few US visitors to visit the textile exhibition
hall though he placed no orders whatsoever.
"I've come here to collect information (about Chinese textile suppliers)
and establish relations," said the official with the Los Angeles-based MLE
Trading company.
Peter Goldman, president with Philadelphia Rapid Transit, said he only
placed orders on unrestricted categories in this session and only to old
suppliers.
"The contracts we signed declined some 50 per cent from last year," he
said.
The half-month CECF concluded on Saturday.
According to statistics from the organizer, contracted volume hit US$29.4
billion, up 0.7 per cent over the previous session in April and up 8.2 per cent
over last autumn.
Machinery and electrical products accounted for 41.6 per cent of the total
contracted exports and light industrial products 33.2 per cent.
The European Union, with a contracted volume of US$10.4 billion, topped the
export destinations in this session and was followed by the United States, the
Middle East and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Japan.
Among the participants, Guangdong, Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces ranked
the first three places in contracted value.
Some provinces like Anhui and Hubei witnessed a growth in contract volume.
(Source: China Daily)
| 
