New Year is always a difficult time for overseas traders with China. The whole country shuts down for a National holiday lasting two weeks with many factories closed for a month. Its a time of great celebration in China and the Spring Festival as it’s known in China is the most important celebration in the Chinese calendar. But this does create particular problems for companies looking to import from China or those looking to export to China. Its important to plan well in advance to avoid shortfalls or missed deadlines. With careful froward planning we are able to ensure our customers don’t get caught out at this time of year.
New year is however also a good time to reflect on the past year and make plans for the forth coming year. We believe it promises to be an exciting one for UK-China trade and following on for Teresa May’s visit to China we expect trade to increase. The pound has been rising over recent months against the US dollar which is good news for importers as most trade with China is actually conducted in USD, but on the other side will make things more challenging for exporters. It remains to e seen whether we will see a lifting of trade barriers to imports to China but any move in that direction would be welcome. China’s economy continues to grow and its burgeoning middle class have an insatiable appetite for quality products from around the globe. There is also a huger for technology, encouraged by the Government and both area’s bring huge opportunities to UK businesses.
Any UK company making quality premium products or involved in leading edge technology and seriously looking to expand its client base cant afford to ignore the opportunities China has to offer. If you are part of one of those companies now is the time to start planning. As we enter the year of the Dog make sure your company gets the bone!