Introduction :
As Indians scale newer heights of consumption, retail shelves are becoming showcases of the competitiveness of Indian manufacturing. Unlike India, China’s economy is greatly export driven. With the demand from China’s traditional markets(mainly US and Europe) dwindling, the country has found a paradise in India’s open and unprotected markets.
The sector which is hurt most is the Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) sector, due to Chinese products flooding the markets with a lucrative price tag of 10 to 70% lower than the prices of the same products manufactured in India.
With the Chinese government giving more incentives to boost its export sector, imports to India and other neighbouring countries will continue to surge. This will not only eat into India’s domestic markets but will also shrink India’s share in global markets.
The question now is whether the methods adopted by the Government to combat this hindrance will be effective in saving our SMEs.
Conclusion :
Our aim behind conducting the survey for our project was to find out about the extent of which Chinese imports have affected the indigenous market. We surveyed 35 traders and 35 consumers and made the following conclusions:
Majority of the traders and almost all of the consumers felt unhappy with the introduction of Chinese goods in the market as they are non durable, cheap in quality and they are made up of toxic materials.
Some traders however felt that Chinese goods ensure better sales as they are more attractive looking, colourful and much cheaper than indigenous products.
From the survey, and the above conclusions, we came to know that the Indian consumer is very aware of the quality and worth of the product that he or she buys, and thus the traders must keep in mind these parameters while selling goods so that indigenous products can once again retain their brand value. Indian authorities will have to ensure that imports from China clear quality and safety norms before they are allowed to be sold and marketed in the country.
Credit: Shrija Chavali
