Gazeta wrote that Chinese products had literally inundated Europe. In the first quarter of 2005, imports from China in certain categories of goods were up a staggering 534%.
Russia does not have any import quotas with China and probably will not have them in the near future, a Federal Customs Service official said. And this certainly does not make Russia's textile manufacturers happy. According to Yury Yablokov, the director general of the Yakovlevsky textile holding, Chinese textiles could flood the Russian market.
In fact, the Russian market has already been inundated with Chinese goods. Sergei Shumilin, an official from the Russian Industry and Energy Ministry, said the textile trade with China was worth $10 billion a year, with about $7.5 billion coming in the form of illegal imports.
Experts are trying to decide how to counter the attack of the Chinese manufacturers on the Russian market. Everybody agrees the import quotas will not help. "The Europeans can afford to impose quotas because they protect their borders well," Yablokov said. "In contrast, our borders are completely open."
According to Natalia Shustikova, the head of TextileExpo analytical center, the state must allocate funds to help the domestic textile industry and establish effective market mechanisms and methods to fight illegal imports.
Yablokov, on the contrary, said domestic manufacturers should take care of themselves. One possible solution, he said, was to occupy a small market niche, producing only linen or specialist clothes. "Besides, we certainly have to improve our quality," he added.
Galena Bankova, a representative of the Domestic Clothes Manufacturers' Association, said despite the difficult situation, the Russian textile industry had a future, because the quality of domestic clothes was generally superior to wares made in China.
