By Patrick Avenell in Shunde
SHUNDE, CHINA: The economic downturn has reduced the international demand for Chinese-made products, but the Chinese Government’s stimulus package has been used to improve the quality and design of the locally made products in the meantime.
Talking at the 2009 Shunde Show in Southern China, Richard Dreyer, vice president, Asia Pacific, of the organiser Koelnmesse, said that fast and sizable improvements have been made to the quality of locally manufactured home appliances, which will be ready to receive demand once international markets improve.
“The Chinese government has implemented a very, very strong stimulus package, which is very beneficial particularly for the household appliance industry,” Dreyer said.
“This package and this program is going to end something next year, hopefully at the same time the overseas is going to pick up again, so that the turnaround of demand from international market to the domestic market will go back quite strongly to the international market.
“I think what has been done, there has been a concentration on research and development and on product quality to produce more competitive products for the domestic market, and particularly for the overseas market
“I think this slow down in export goods has given us more time, and the opportunity, to look into production processes, and look into product designs, and do some improvements.”
According to reports in the local English language newspaper, the China Daily, the local economy has performed very well during the economic downturn, which it blames on the United States. The stimulus packages have been well received here, with suppliers using that injection of funds to improve processes to service international importers once conditions improve.
“This time has been used very carefully and very strongly by the domestic industries,” Dreyer said. “From next year, the Shunde domestic appliance industry will be even stronger in the world market than it has been before.”