Li Jie, manager of the marketing department at the International Business Division of Kongka Group, said prospects for exports this year are still challenging owing to buyers' declining willingness to place orders, rising costs at home and currency appreciation.

"Robust shipments to emerging markets, such as the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia, powerfully supported our export growth — 20 to 30 percent — in the first quarter of this year, contrasting the 10 percent growth in 2012," Li said.

Liu Juan, general manager of the export department of Guangdong Winto Ceramics, said that buyers from emerging economies have much stronger purchasing power than those from the EU, and the company will target Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

"I used to buy machines from the EU, but from this year I will change to China," said Yezichalem Kassa, CEO of Day Agro Industry, a fruit processing plant in Ethiopia.

"Chinese fruit processing machines are less expensive than the EU ones, which is the major advantage. And we hear so many positive things about Chinese machinery, and the EU machinery is becoming unaffordable. So now the Chinese machines are of good quality and reasonable prices," she added.

Andrei Alcea, general manager of Plasme Termice, a Romanian company in household items, said that some China-made electronic heaters are similar to EU ones, in addition to having a lower price.

Mechanical and electrical products accounted for 50.7 percent of China's total trade in 2012, according to the Ministry of Commerce.