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Business as usual, say Indian vendors
By Wang Cong in Mumbai Source:Global Times Published: 2016/10/11 22:48:39
0
Calls to boycott China-made goods not hitting sales
Consumers stand outside a wholesale store selling China-made goods in Crawford Market in Mumbai, India, on Monday. Photo: Wang Cong/GT
Several wholesalers in Mumbai, India, said on Monday that their businesses selling China-made products to local retailers remain stable and have not been affected by some recent calls to boycott Chinese products in the country.
A social media campaign urging people to refrain from buying goods imported from China has been building in India, following rising tensions between India and Pakistan on the border and China's move to temporarily block India's request for the UN to sanction a Pakistani national.
But on a hot and humid Monday afternoon in the bustling Crawford Market, one of the busiest markets in Mumbai with hundreds of wholesale and retail stores, it was business as usual. The street was filled with cars honking nonstop and people with all kinds of shopping bags in their hands or over their heads.
"It's the same as before," said an employee of a store that wholesales handbags imported from China, when asked by the Global Times about the impact of the anti-Chinese products campaign on his business.
"There have been no changes in our business; it's not going up, it's not going down," the employee said, noting the store is still getting shipments of products from South China's Guangdong Province through an agent and is selling to regular retailers in Mumbai and elsewhere. "You know, business is business. It's all about customer relations and the quality of your products."
The employee requested anonymity because he did not want to comment on "an emotional political discussion," a common request among business owners in the market when talking about the matter.
Another employee, who also requested anonymity, at a wholesale store that sells everything from belts to toys, most of which are imported from China, said he had "heard people talking" about not buying Chinese products.
"I think it's mostly just talk so far. People still go for the cheaper products," he told the Global Times.
Several other wholesalers in the Crawford Market and electronics retailers in the nearby Manishi, which is filled with China-made electronics, also told the Global Times that they haven't felt any effect on their businesses yet, but one said there might be an impact "if this kind of [talk] continues in the future."
The campaign started in August after the circulation of a fake letter, which had supposedly been signed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The letter called for people to boycott Chinese products ahead of Diwali, a traditional Hindu festival. After the letter spread on Indian social media, Modi's office clarified that the letter was not authentic.
Nonetheless, the campaign regained momentum thanks to support from three politicians from India's right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party, one of the major political parties in India, who urged people to boycott China-made goods.
Indian media reports said nationalistic sentiment had been growing after an attack on an Indian army base near the border with Pakistan last month, along with China's opposition to India's membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group and its move to temporarily block India's request to sanction a Pakistani national that the country accuses of links to terrorism.
'Self-defeating'
However, some Indian media reports said that boycotting Chinese products based on such nationalistic sentiment would be "self-defeating" and would show the danger of "hyper-nationalism."
In an editorial on Monday, the India-based English-language newspaper The Economic Times said cost-competitive Chinese imports have helped to curb the prices of manufactured goods in India and enable the poor to be part of the new digital era in India.
The newspaper further said a boycott could hurt Indian industries, such as the pharmaceutical industry, which depends on imports of bulk drugs from China, and would not help India to boost its global competitiveness. "Trash #BoycottChina," it said.
China is India's largest trading partner. In the first six months this year, Indian imports from China reached $28.5 billion, while its exports to China reached about $4.1 billion, data posted by China'sMinistry of Commerceshowed.
The two governments have also shown interest in boosting their bilateral trade and investment ties. During the Fourth China-India Economic and Strategic Dialogue held last week in New Delhi, officials from both sides vowed to cooperate further in economic development and 16 projects worth $16 billion were signed, China'sNational Development and Reform Commissionsaid in a statement on Friday.
The projects are in areas such as manufacturing, high-speed rail, clean energy and urban development, according to Indian media reports.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1010804.shtml
By Wang Cong in Mumbai Source:Global Times Published: 2016/10/11 22:48:39
0
Calls to boycott China-made goods not hitting sales
Consumers stand outside a wholesale store selling China-made goods in Crawford Market in Mumbai, India, on Monday. Photo: Wang Cong/GT
Several wholesalers in Mumbai, India, said on Monday that their businesses selling China-made products to local retailers remain stable and have not been affected by some recent calls to boycott Chinese products in the country.
A social media campaign urging people to refrain from buying goods imported from China has been building in India, following rising tensions between India and Pakistan on the border and China's move to temporarily block India's request for the UN to sanction a Pakistani national.
But on a hot and humid Monday afternoon in the bustling Crawford Market, one of the busiest markets in Mumbai with hundreds of wholesale and retail stores, it was business as usual. The street was filled with cars honking nonstop and people with all kinds of shopping bags in their hands or over their heads.
"It's the same as before," said an employee of a store that wholesales handbags imported from China, when asked by the Global Times about the impact of the anti-Chinese products campaign on his business.
"There have been no changes in our business; it's not going up, it's not going down," the employee said, noting the store is still getting shipments of products from South China's Guangdong Province through an agent and is selling to regular retailers in Mumbai and elsewhere. "You know, business is business. It's all about customer relations and the quality of your products."
The employee requested anonymity because he did not want to comment on "an emotional political discussion," a common request among business owners in the market when talking about the matter.
Another employee, who also requested anonymity, at a wholesale store that sells everything from belts to toys, most of which are imported from China, said he had "heard people talking" about not buying Chinese products.
"I think it's mostly just talk so far. People still go for the cheaper products," he told the Global Times.
Several other wholesalers in the Crawford Market and electronics retailers in the nearby Manishi, which is filled with China-made electronics, also told the Global Times that they haven't felt any effect on their businesses yet, but one said there might be an impact "if this kind of [talk] continues in the future."
The campaign started in August after the circulation of a fake letter, which had supposedly been signed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The letter called for people to boycott Chinese products ahead of Diwali, a traditional Hindu festival. After the letter spread on Indian social media, Modi's office clarified that the letter was not authentic.
Nonetheless, the campaign regained momentum thanks to support from three politicians from India's right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party, one of the major political parties in India, who urged people to boycott China-made goods.
Indian media reports said nationalistic sentiment had been growing after an attack on an Indian army base near the border with Pakistan last month, along with China's opposition to India's membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group and its move to temporarily block India's request to sanction a Pakistani national that the country accuses of links to terrorism.
'Self-defeating'
However, some Indian media reports said that boycotting Chinese products based on such nationalistic sentiment would be "self-defeating" and would show the danger of "hyper-nationalism."
In an editorial on Monday, the India-based English-language newspaper The Economic Times said cost-competitive Chinese imports have helped to curb the prices of manufactured goods in India and enable the poor to be part of the new digital era in India.
The newspaper further said a boycott could hurt Indian industries, such as the pharmaceutical industry, which depends on imports of bulk drugs from China, and would not help India to boost its global competitiveness. "Trash #BoycottChina," it said.
China is India's largest trading partner. In the first six months this year, Indian imports from China reached $28.5 billion, while its exports to China reached about $4.1 billion, data posted by China'sMinistry of Commerceshowed.
The two governments have also shown interest in boosting their bilateral trade and investment ties. During the Fourth China-India Economic and Strategic Dialogue held last week in New Delhi, officials from both sides vowed to cooperate further in economic development and 16 projects worth $16 billion were signed, China'sNational Development and Reform Commissionsaid in a statement on Friday.
The projects are in areas such as manufacturing, high-speed rail, clean energy and urban development, according to Indian media reports.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1010804.shtml
