According to Zhong Shan, China’s Vice Minister of Commerce, China’s international trade is facing a “complicated and grim” situation due to a lack of demand and intensified competition in the international market.
Zhong said that, on the one hand, China’s exports face competition from traditional exporting countries. On the other hand, with regard to labor intensive products, there is growing competition from developing countries due to rising labor costs in China. Statistics show that, since the third quarter of last year, the market share of Chinese exports to the United States, the European Union, and Japan decreased by 1.3%, 1% and 0.6%, respectively. Seven categories of labor-intensive exports, including textiles, clothing, footwear, luggage, furniture, toys, and plastic products saw a rapid decline.
Source: Xinhua, January 9, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2012-01/09/c_111401927.htm