All for the Exports

by Zhou Chenliang

With various recent policies aiming to stabilize foreign trade starting to take effect， Chinese importers and exporters alike are accelerating resumption of work and production. China Pictorial checked in on foreign trade enterprises in Quanzhou City， Fujian Province and Hefei City， Anhui Province to see what they have done to ensure smooth operations amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Quanzhou： Gradual Return to Busy

On March 19， 2020， Li Biyu， general manager of Quanzhou Qufeng Trade Co.， Ltd. based in Jinjiang of Quanzhou City， Fujian Province， was exceptionally busy. She had two short meetings with her team about foreign orders before a video call with Italian clients. Then， she rushed 10 kilometers to her factory to check production progress. Simultaneously， confirmed COVID-19 infections were spiking in Italy. Her Italian clients， who could work at the office two days before， were by that time working from home and practicing social distancing.

Way back in February， Lis company resumed work and production. A company mainly exporting shoes and apparel， it stays at the middle and high-end reaches of the global industrial and supply chain by leveraging Quanzhous complete and strong apparel manufacturing chain.

Before the COVID-19 outbreak， her companys order volume had increased by 70 percent over the same period of last year. After the outbreak in China， the company made extensive preparations for work and production to resume. It prepared masks， disinfectants， forehead thermometers， and COVID-19 insurance for its employees. Every worker was required to bring their own tableware and sit in a designated place to eat. The company even bought materials to build isolation areas just in case. After it reopened， some accessories were in short supply， so Li did what she could to find alternative suppliers. Since it also suffered a labor shortage， the company dispatched charter buses to pick up workers to make sure they could return in time.

However， the rapid spread of the virus in other countries and regions has upended foreign trade. “The situation in Europe and the United States is pretty bad，” sighed Li. By March 24， Li was even more anxious. For days， she had been receiving cancellations and suspensions of export orders. “Our orders took a dive by 50 percent，” she recalled. However， amidst anxieties and worries， she also received a few pleasant surprises. A first-time South Korean customer placed an order for 10，000 pieces of sportswear through the companys e-commerce platform. The companys largest order from Europe， worth 200，000 euros， managed to survive.

“The target we set for this year already seems impossible to reach，” groaned Li. “But we will do what we can to secure our share of the Southeast Asian market， which is the root of our overseas business.” Thanks to sales via online trading platforms and the countrys strong export tax rebate policy， Li remains confident about her companys prospects.

Chinas State Council announced that tax rebate rates for almost all exported goods would be adjusted to 13 percent. With an eye on the future， new retail is booming in China. “We are optimistic about our prospects for the domestic market，”said Li. “We are doing research and applying for domestic access right now. We want to seize the opportunity， get a good grasp of domestic fashion trends， and develop new products with cutting-edge fabrics and materials. Overall， we are switching focus from overseas to the domestic market.”

As of March 17， 2020， all industrial enterprises above designated size in Quanzhou had resumed business. By adjusting their order structures in a timely and flexible manner， enterprises gradually regained production capacity and accelerated pace of work resumption. Intelligent production lines of some enterprises helped immensely. Many orders from domestic and foreign markets were received， and products were delivered to international clients gradually.“Made in Quanzhou” is returning to its busy normal.

Hefei： Inland Exporters Guarantee Production

On the afternoon of March 20， Hu Liqin， head of international trade of Tongxing Technology Co.， Ltd. in Changfeng County， Hefei City， Anhui Province， made a video call with a Russian customer. Because of the COVID-19 outbreak， Hu was worried that the ordered optical laser cutting machines wouldnt be delivered on time.

Tongxing is an export-oriented enterprise offering computer numerical control （CNC） carving machines and optical laser cutting machines. It exports more than 2，000 units annually to countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative. With an annual output value of more than US$71 million， the company is leading its peers in China. Chinese foreign trade enterprises like Tongxing were much less affected by the huge global impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

“At the height of the COVID-19 outbreak in China， we were very worried that our orders would get canceled if we couldnt deliver on time，” recalled Hu. “Back then， we couldnt predict how the outbreak would develop， so we were quite anxious.” After her company resumed work， Hu and her team began contacting their international customers daily to assure them that their orders would be delivered on time. She visited the assembly workshop frequently to check on product quality.

“When the virus started getting contained in China， the international situation became an increasing concern，” said Hu. “Our main markets such as Russia， Germany， Spain， and Portugal were under great threat from the pandemic. Compared with days ago， the situation has reversed. Now we can deliver the goods on time， but our customers have problems.”

According to the companys sales department， some clients requested a delay in shipping their orders and others simply cancelled due to the pandemic. “I understand that the situation is really hard for them. Some clients had to shut down their factories for social distancing，”sighed Hu. Despite all the difficulties， Tongxing is now operating at full speed and capacity. Many of its long-time clients have pledged to return after the pandemic. “We will continue production， and we are confident our orders will come back.”

Statistics from the Anhui Provincial Commission of Commerce show that as of March 15， 2020， all 110 key foreign trade enterprises in the province with an annual import-export volume exceeding US$65 million had resumed work and production， and another 65 major cross-border e-commerce enterprises had reopened. As the coronavirus sweeps through the rest of the world， Chinese foreign trade companies that have resumed work are seeing some light at the end of the tunnel.