Toy exporters find foreign orders not so tough
Updated: 2008-04-29 09:13
GUANGZHOU -- Foreign buyers at China's 103rd Import and Export Fair, or Canton Fair, are positive about the competitiveness of Chinese toys, although average prices have risen by 20 percent over the past year, participants interviewed at the event said.
Toy makers had been worried that orders might fall sharply this year. But "the situation is better than we expected," an exhibitor from toy maker Jiangsu Hongye said. "The toy market may get better after April, and we are expecting more orders."
Chinese toy exports slowed last year due to increased prices and the yuan's appreciation. Large-scale quality recalls also hurt the industry. Statistics from the Guangdong Toy Association showed that the province exported 14.7 billion yuan (2.1 billion US dollars) of toys in 2007, up just one percent year-on-year.
However, the industry has seen initial signs of recovery. In the first two months of 2008, the province's toy exports rose 43.5 percent to 1.79 billion yuan.
"I have been to the Canton Fair every time since 1985. I am confident of Chinese products," said Peter Zollner, a buyer from Sweden's Allan Flink Souvenirer AB. "The quality of the products has been improving every year."
He said he would purchase more goods this time, and his business was "going better and better."
Quality issues gave China's toy industry some tough times during the second half of 2007. Western countries raised quality standards and issued several recalls on Chinese toys.
One company affected was giant Mattel, which recalled more than 18 million toys last August, which were later traced to its design flaws.
China conducted special campaigns to improve toy quality and banned many unqualified companies from exporting.
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