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Spain:Chinese stranglehold domestic footwear business |
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2004-10-13
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Spanish entrepreneurs and politicians know where the shoe pinches!
They have joined forces in accusing businesses from China of destabilizing Spain''s shoe industry.
They state that Asian firms and their governments resort to unfair competition, but others say Spain should stop its whining and stand up to the ruthless global marketplace battles.
Elche, a southeastern city of 200,000, has seen the most vociferous campaigns, where many make a living from shoe production over past half a century.
Elche already harangued by China make footwear prices that the country as a whole can not compete, worse is the news that Chinese businesses without bothering to sell through localites, have gone a step ahead - they buy warehouses in Elche.
"We have cut our production costs as far as possible, but the Chinese always sell cheaper," said Pedro Mendez, chief of the Elche footwear producers'' association.
Spanish shoe production shrank by 12 percent last year, and 4 percent of jobs were lost in a sector employing 45,000 people, according to the Spanish Footwear Industry Federation.
Seven in 10 pairs of shoes sold in Spain are made elsewhere.
Elche has seen many a local shoe factories close down in recent times. The discontent turned to violent proportions when about 500 people set ablaze two Chinese shoe warehouses amidst chants of ‘Chinese out.’ The incident raised diplomatic tempers with the Chinese consul accusing the demonstrators of racism and condemning police passivity in the face of arson. China meanwhile, allowed a counter-demonstration in Beijing.
China''s competitiveness is borne out of meager salaries and unsafe working conditions as per Spanish businesspersons. In Spain, the Chinese "cheat customs by importing more shoes than they say in each container, do not charge VAT, keep their shops open at any time and do not comply with sanitary regulations," Mendez said.
Recalling the boom times the 1960’s some Elche residents admit that the Chinese are only doing what they themselves did to Italian, French and German competitors then. The Chinese just "copy and make shoes cheaper," footwear producer Jesus Canovas said. |
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