China's toy exports rebound

6 Jan 2008, 1325 hrs IST,PTI BEIJING: Exports of Chinese toys soared in the first 10 months of 2007 touching USD 7.07 billion, registering a robust 20.1 per cent growth over the same period the previous year. The 10-month period saw China's toy exports to European and North American markets recover and to emerging markets grow rapidly, Customs sources said. Between January and October, China sold toys worth USD 3.06 billion to the US, a 13.3 per cent rise over the same period in 2006, and USD 1.72 billion worth to the European Union (EU), up 29.9 per cent. The growth rate was 11.2 percentage higher for the US and 24.9 percentage points for the EU. The two markets absorbed 67.6 per cent of China's total toy exports, the official Xinhua news agency said quoting sources. China also sold toys of USD 390 million worth to Latin America, up 42.2 per cent. "Made in China" image faced an unprecedented "confidence crisis," triggered by the recall of China-made toys by Mattel Inc of the United States, which was followed by others. Millions of toys were recalled last year, particularly by the US raising concerns over safety. The latest in the scandal was the pulling off the shelves of 4.2 million bead toys whose exports China froze after the US authorities and Australia raised objections over it's quality. Chinese authorities had launched a crackdown to improve the safety record with exports rebounding. It was not just quality defects that prompted recalls but disputes over standards, technical barriers, price hikes, trade protectionism and playing-up of media coverage were also involved, Xinhua reported. (http://timesofindia.com)