Reuters Chinese recently reported that, according to a Reuters’ survey, two thirds of the vendors at the on-going 118th Canton Fair reported that they expect the export market to decline. The semi-annual Canton Fair is widely regarded as “China’s International Trade Barometer.” The Reuters’ survey was based on a sample of 103 Chinese vendors who presented at the Fair. Most of them are mid-to-small sized manufacturing companies. The companies surveyed predicted that the cost of manufacturing will increase by 5.6 percent in the next 12 months, while the growth of international orders will significantly slow down. Most of the companies in the survey sample expressed the belief that the export market decline will last at least six months. The survey results were worse than the similar survey conducted in April. China’s official numbers showed that Chinese exports declined by 5.5 percent and 3.7 percent in August and September, respectively. Many companies hope the Chinese currency will continue its depreciation.
Source: Reuters Chinese, October 16, 2015
http://cn.reuters.com/article/2015/10/16/poll-cn-trade-idCNKCS0SA14J20151016