By Xinhua,
Beijing : China’s external trade expansion is likely to be hampered by the global economic slowdown, rising prices of raw materials on the international market and a rapidly appreciating Yuan.
The impact of the US credit crisis has spread from financial markets to consumption and investment fields. The slowdown of the US economy will shrink China’s exports to that country, according to a commerce ministry report Wednesday.
“As one of the major manufacturers and exporters, China has become one of the countries to bear the burden of the rising costs of raw materials. Chinese exporters will have to scrabble for dropping profit margins under greater operation pressures,” the report said.
Official data show the import prices of crude oil, iron ore, soy beans and edible oil increased by 66 percent, 80.6 percent, 77 percent and 69.3 percent, respectively, in the first quarter over the same period of last year.
The report said the competitiveness of China’s labour intensive industries, such as textiles, garments, shoes and toys, will possibly be dampened and some of them will even see financial losses.
Chinese labour-intensive industries should update technology and products for value addition, suggested Li Yushi, vice president of Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of MOC.
Li predicted China’s trade volume will grow by between 10 percent and 15 percent in 2008.