WADE TRADE NEWS
Volume 7, Issue 7 : July 2008
Dear Subscriber
Welcome to Wade Trade News import-export news for July 2008. In this issue we'll update you on the latest trade opportunities in China, India, Germany, New Zealand and Africa. There's details of a site offering thousands of great trade contacts, and links for a couple of international trade blogs you might find useful.
China Trade Surplus Declines
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China's trade surplus declined 10% last month. However, China's US$20.2 billion trade surplus is still massive and the gaps with both the USA and Europe continued to widen. China's overall trade surplus for the first five months of the year was US$78 billion, down 8.6% from the same period last year. Imports grew 40% to US$100.3 billion - reflecting rising prices for oil and other commodities. Exports rose 28% to US$120.5 billion - still strong despite belief that the slowdown in the US economy would cut export demand.
Some commentators claim China is keeping the yuan artificially weak to give Chinese exporters an advantage, although the yuan has steadily appreciated since its peg to the dollar was removed nearly three years ago.
India Production Motoring Ahead
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India's industrial production rose again last month - as companies such as Ford Motor Co. and General Motor expanded capacity in the world's second-fastest growing economy. Production at factories, utilities and mines rose 7% from a year ago after gaining 3.9% the month before. Ford is spending US$500 million to expand its factory in Chennai to make 250,000 engines and 200,000 vehicles annually. Nissan Motor Co. is building a US$1.1 billion factory. Economic growth has averaged 8.9% since 2004, making India the fastest growing major economy in the world after China. Per-capita income doubled to 24,321 rupees (US$568) in the year to March 2008, compared with 2001.
Here's a useful site for India:
www.ciionline.org. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) offers lots of useful information about doing business with India.
Germany Still Leading World Exporter
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Despite a major challenge from China, Germany should keep its title as the world's export leader in the coming 12 months - a leading trade official said in Berlin recently. The Federation of German Wholesale and Foreign Trade (BGA) President Anton Boerner said that the slump in the dollar combined with slowing US growth would harm Chinese trade more than Germany. As a result, he said he believed that they will remain the world's number one exporter in 2009. Strong demand from the world's emerging economies for German products resulted in exports rising by 1.2% last month to produce a sizable year-on-year increase of 13.9%.
The BGA site is at
www.bga.de. There's an English version and a good list of member organisations there.
New Zealand Hoping For FTA With USA
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New Zealand Trade Minister Phil Goff said recently that he is confident New Zealand will be in a good position to seek a free trade agreement with the USA when the new US administration takes over in January. Goff has met US officials over the last few weeks in Washington and at conferences in France and Peru.
Several New Zealand governments have sought negotiations on a free trade agreement with the United States, but so far have not been able to conclude one - partly due to the fact that the New Zealand dairy industry has been seen as a threat. There is also interest by the USA in an FTA between New Zealand, Chile, Singapore and Brunei - known as the P4.
New Zealand Trade & Enterprise is a good place to start if you're interested in doing business with New Zealand:
www.nzte.govt.nz
Africa Could Be The Place To Trade ?
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Although many major economies are suffering a slump most experts are optimistic about Africa's growth prospects. Twenty five countries in sub-Saharan Africa enjoyed a growth rate above 5% last year - and 31 countries are expected to achieve that growth rate this year. Rising commodity prices and better economic management in many African countries are helping to boost growth here.
'The outlook in Africa is exceedingly bright' South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel said recently. 'The African Development Bank's forecast of 5.9% growth may be an underestimate. Africa is a good place right now.' Research by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the OECD and the UN Economic Commission for Africa last month showed that Africa's economy will grow by 6% this year and next. He Wenping, research fellow and director of African Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), said China is playing a key role in Africa's strong economic performance - as Africa-China trade accounts for over 20% of growth.
All Africa at
www.allafrica.com is a good place to keep up to date with Africa news and developments.
Great Site For Trade Contacts : Export Bureau
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ExportBureau is a non-profit global trade company directory providing a completely free, simple manufacturing company directory. It now also provides direct e-mail contact for buyers and free instant online company history reports, fraud reports, and international trade statistics available free for every major industrial category: Agriculture. Electronics. Metals & Minerals. Apparel & Fashion. Energy. Office Supplies. Arts & Crafts. Entertainment. Packaging & Paper. Beauty & Jewellery. Food & Beverage. Security & Protection. Chemical & Plastics. Furniture. Sports Equipment. Computer Hardware. Home Supplies. Telecommunications. Computer Software. Industrial & Equipment. Textiles. Construction. Machinery. Toys. Electrical. Medical & Health. Transport & Vehicles. Some great contacts here:
www.exportbureau.com.
Blogging Your Way To Import-Export Success !
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Blogging - writing and reading web logs - is booming in popularity right now. It's not just for fun - blogs can be a good way of finding out information and making contacts that you won't find anywhere else. There are hundreds of international trade blogs out there on the Internet, but here are a couple you might find handy: China Success Stories is a blog about doing business in China. You can find it at
www.chinasuccessstories.com. All Roads Lead to China is another blog that keeps readers up to date about fast-moving business developments in China ....
www.allroadsleadtochina.com.
Until next time,
Mark Hempshell
Editor