Chinese quota system ‘an abysmal failure’

JUST WHY is the department of trade and industry (dti) still fiddling around with the Chinese clothing and textile import quota system when it expires this December 31, and the various stakeholders in the clothing and textiles trades expected it to then be “allowed to drop through the carpet”, is the question raised by one an industry commentator. This follows the dti issuing a request for a study group to do an “assessment of the effectiveness of clothing and textile import quotas from the People’s Republic of China”. “The purpose of the proposed study,” said a departmental statement, “is to determine the effectiveness, or otherwise, of the import quotas imposed on textile and clothing products originating in China, and to propose appropriate recommendations.” But, suggested a voice in the SA retail clothing trade, that “or otherwise” in the dti statement should be the findings of any such study. “On the fabric side, it was a complete disaster,” said Selwyn Eagle, MD of the Foschini Group’s apparel supply company, TFG. “It ruined all our relationships and the local market just could not deliver – with 40% either bad quality or late. “We can’t get hold of the right stuff at the right time, and it’s really hurt our in-house manufacturing. I’m devastated – sitting here crying because I just can’t get anything into the stores. “The local guys have been a disaster. They don’t have the expertise, the infrastructure to cope, or the money to finance it.” He was not alone in his tears. Martin Deall, merchandise logistics executive at Edcon, also couldn’t see why the dti was still talking about the quota system. “I thought the department had realised that the quota system wasn’t the answer,” he told FTW. “We warned them that it wouldn’t help local industry as they wanted, and would have detrimental effects on the local retail trade. “It hit local manufacturers, who just couldn’t get a lot of the fabrics they needed. Retailers, meantime, just had to struggle to find new sources, because the local market couldn’t supply the shortfall. “And it takes time to make new contacts and find sources of supply.” The SA textile industry wasn’t too enamoured of the quota system either – with Brian Brink, executive director of the Textile Federation, unenthusiastically ranking it only “marginally good”. He felt it had little effect on the overall importation of cheap textiles and clothing, with importers just changing to other cut-price producer countries. And stimulate the local industry it did not. Said Brink: “The intentions were good, but the design and the way it worked were just not as was desired.” The only good news at the moment, according to Eagle, was that there appeared to be a new name at the dti – with a more attentive ear to the ground. “We’ve had a meeting with the department – and they’re actually listening to us for a change."