Market Information

THE value of China’s foreign trade in the first 11 months of the year has surpassed that of the whole of 2006, the General Administration of Customs said yesterday. The growth rate of exports rose again but the trade surplus fell slightly due to a faster jump in imports. But the pressure remained heavy on the yuan to appreciate further, analysts said. China’s foreign trade value totaled US$1.97 trillion through November, a 23.6-percent increase from a year earlier and more than the US$1.76-trillion for the whole of last year. In November alone, foreign trade rose 23.9 percent to US$208.9 billion. Exports jumped 22.8 percent year on year to US$117.6 billion while imports climbed 25.3 percent to US$91.3 billion. The export growth rate edged up 0.5 percentage point from that of October, which dipped a bit from a month earlier, while imports reached a record high. Trade surplus in November of US$26.3 billion, is slightly less than US$27.05 billion in October. “The slowdown of the US economy has prompted China to expand exports to other markets such as the European Union and ASEAN countries,” said Shen Minggao, an economist with the Citigroup. “Currency appreciation could also have led to a change in China’s trade pattern. If the trends continue, the growth of China’s trade surplus would moderate gradually.” Combined exports in the first 11 months expanded 26.1 percent to US$1.103 trillion while imports soared 20.5 percent to US$865.4 billion. The trade surplus through November widened 52.2 percent year on year to US$238.1 billion. The EU remained China’s biggest trade partner through November with bilateral trade of US$322.7 billion, followed by the United States with US$276.2 billion and Japan with US$213.8 billion. The National Development and Reform Commission, China’s top planner, has forecast earlier the trade surplus will grow to between US$250 billion and US$300 billion this year. The soaring trade surplus has flooded the economy with cash and increased pressure from the US and Europe for the yuan to appreciate further. The yuan has gained more than 10 percent since the US dollar link was scrapped in July 2005 and ended at 7.379 yesterday. Standard Chartered has estimated earlier the exchange rate will grow to 6.84 yuan per US dollar in one year.

Source: Foreign trade swells to surpass whole of 2006

from Shanghai Daily: Business by Wang Yanlin

by William McEwen, Xiaoguang Fang, Chuanping Zhang, and Richard BurkholderVia: Understadning the Chinese consumer

The leaning towers of the new China Central Television (CCTV) headquarters in Beijing Their full height will be 230m (755ft).

Photos by Joe

Image from: www.businessweek.com 

Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) is expected to become one of the world’s top five busiest airports by the end of next year. BCIA said that it will have seen more than 64 million passenger departures and arrivals by the end of next year.

from China Business Beijing airport to be among world’s busiest 5

Photo by Joe: SOHO Beijing 2007. “Show your mercy to the green lawn”

A great sticky message is one that people can understand when they hear it, that they remember later on, and that changes something about the way they think or act.

Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference explains that successful messages have a Stickiness Factor: Stickiness means that a message makes an impact – it’s memorable.

“There is a simple way to package information that, under the right circumstances, can make it irresistible/sticky and compels a person into action. All you have to do is find it.”

Companies will often spend months coming up with business plans and product ideas for China but then spend only a few hours thinking about how to convey that message to their Chinese customers often translating it directly from English to Chinese. Great ideas need great messages. It’s worth spending time making sure that your message is going to be meaningful and memorable in the Chinese context.

When we undertook the market entry campaign for Canterbury of New Zealand we needed to create messages that would open doors and make companies sit up and listen. We wanted to present Canterbury’s company information in a way that would be irresistible to potential partners in China. Here’s a sample of some of the messages we used when introducing Canterbury to potential partners (translated from Chinese).

“Canterbury is the world’s original rugby brand, for this reason they have forever earned a place in history.”

“Canterbury’s products are the culmination of over 100 years of pride and tradition.”

“Canterbury is sold in many of the world’s leading retailers including Harrods and Saks Fifth Avenue.”

The elements in these messages that stuck in the Chinese mind were the references to Canterbury’s heritage and their international credentials “Ming Pai”. Ming Pai and heritage are two of the most important qualities Chinese businesses look for in foreign brands. We crafted stories and messages to reinforce these elements, giving just enough information to wet taste buds and leaving people wanting to know more.

Being able to create a meaningful message in China requires an understanding of the culture, language and a perception of how messages are understood and remembered by Chinese people.

The Stickiness Factor test

• Is your message going to be memorable?
• Does it make sense in the Chinese context?
• Is it practical – how does the message fit?
• Is the message unique?
• Is the message packaged to make the desired impact?

Unicon work with companies to create meaningful messages in the Chinese context and we’re bloody good at it too! (kiwi context).

www.unicon.co.nz

China ranks first in global plantation area (about 25 million ha) and fifth in global forest area (175 million ha).

To address the growing and massive timber supply gap, numerous Chinese government policies and incentives have recently been enacted to expand the area and volume of plantations; the focus is on the expansion of fast-growing, high-yield (FGHY) plantations. The goal by 2010 is to have 4.7 million ha of FGHY plantations established, providing 49 million m3 of timber per year, which in turn can support 6.4 million m3 of wood-based panel production, and provide 3.4 million m3 of large-diameter timber production. By 2020, the FGHY plantations are planned to exceed 13 million ha, providing a whopping 133 million m3 of timber per year that could support 21.5 million m3 of wood-based panel production and 15.8 million m3 of large diameter-timber. These goals and new policies demonstrate the importance of the forestry sector in the eyes of the central government. These plantation policies and others are being used by the government to stimulate investments in priority projects, especially in the wood pulp and wood panel sectors. For potential investors, China’s market for locally grown plantation wood offers good prospects for stable and continuous revenues. However, in China’s current context, developing new plantations or buying existing plantations is not a straightforward task.

Source: WOOD Markets Monthly, October 2007 Report Thanks Paul!

A NEW Zealand kiwifruit marketing company took a Jiangsu Province fruit trading company to court, accusing it of trademark infringement and demanding 300,000 yuan (US$39,474) compensation. Shanghai No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court heard the case yesterday but didn’t give a verdict. New Zealand Zespri Group Limited, the world’s biggest kiwifruit marketing company, sells kiwifruit in about 70 countries and regions. It entered the mainland market in 1998 and registered its trademark as Zespri with a logo showing sunbeams. But company officials found a similar trademark and logo on kiwifruit sold by Xishu Fruit Trading Company in the local market earlier this year. They reported the case to Shanghai Administration of Industry and Commerce, as Xishu’s fruit bore the trademark Znishio and a similar sunbeam logo. The watchdog seized about 100 boxes of the fruit and the labels. However, Zespri told the court that Xishu continued selling the fruit with the similar trademark, which also appeared on its Website. During the hearing, Xishu argued the two words were obviously different. The sunbeam, it said, was a common way of representing the fruit.

Source. Shanghai Daily: NZ fruit company sues Jiangsu trader

New Zealand remains on track to complete a “high quality and comprehensive” free trade deal with China by April next year, Prime Minister Helen Clark says.

Source: NZ Herald:       NZ-China trade deal on track - Clark

FOREIGN food companies are making a beeline to China hoping to tap the huge potential in the imported food industry as they cash in on people’s rising disposable income and easing of import tariffs. A record 800 companies from 35 countries and regions yesterday promoted their food specialities and beverages at FHC China 2007 in Shanghai for the first time. One of the largest international food, wine and hospitality equipment and supply exhibitions, it opened yesterday and will end tomorrow at Shanghai New International Expo Center in Pudong New Area. A wide variety of imported products will be displayed, from fresh and preserved foods, beverages, wine and spirits, bakery ingredients to confectionery, suggesting foreign companies are really eager to tap the emerging market. Seven Austrian companies are showcasing food specialities like Julius Meinl Coffee, Darbo jams and Pfaffl wines at their pavilions. “China’s entry to the World Trade Organization has lowered tariffs and brought economic liberalization that yielded gains for US food exports,” said Wayne Batwin, an official from the Agricultural Trade Office at the US Consulate Shanghai. “Continued economic growth boosted the demand for high-quality foods and improvements in retail, distribution and transport system also increased competitiveness of imported food and beverages in the local market,” Batwin added. Metro Cash & Carry China is one foreign food and beverage wholesaler which is benefiting from Chinese people’s interest in imported food. Revenue of imported food now makes up 10 percent of Metro China’s total food sales and the retailer has set up an imported food area in all its 34 stores nationwide to meet consumers’ demand, Philippe Bacac, general manager of Metro Cash & Carry China East China Business unit, said. Besides wine, snack foods such as ice creams and frozen foods are also becoming popular. “The competition in the snack foods sector is quite demanding amid people’s growing disposable income and willingness to try new things,” said Zhong Wei, marketing manager of Gourmedis (China) Shanghai Office. He also added that sales were also boosted as consumers trusted imported food meets international safety standard. Gourmedis, which added Alberto Pizza, Cellini Coffee and Maina cakes into its existing 1,000 items under 15 brands this year, is expected to double its turnover next year, Zhong said.

via Shanghai Daily: Business by Jin Jing on 11/15/07 Foreign food firms keen to bite into huge market

CUSTOMS authorities uncovered 1,914 cases of intellectual property rights infringement in the first three quarters of 2007. Goods involved in these cases were worth 230 million yuan (US$30.95 million), said the General Administration of Customs in a report on its Website. The GAC has stepped up its efforts in IPR protection since it launched a five-month nationwide campaign named “Dragon Boat” on October 1. The campaign mainly targets IPR-infringing exports to the United States, the European Union, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates by shipment and mail. Last month, customs authorities in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, uncovered 23 infringement cases and seized 32,800 fake Louis Vuitton, Nokia and Adidas products. On November 5, a man was caught at Beijing Capital International Airport carrying nearly 2,000 counterfeit watches bearing Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin and Rolex trademarks. “Since its entry into the World Trade Organization, China has made tremendous progress in IPR protection,” said Zhang Hanlin, president of the WTO Research Institute under the University of International Business and Economics. “If China wants to make headway in upgrading its industry, it has to rely on its own core technologies and brands. “China is attaching greater importance to IPR protection not only because of pressure from foreign countries, but also from the need to protect its (own domestic) products,” said Zhang.

Via: Shanghai Daily Customs detects 1,900 IPR cases