Some 101,000 foreign businessmen attended the just-closed China Export Commodities Fair held in Guangzhou, capital of south China' s Guangdong Province, declined 9 percent; export volume from the event was US$13.367 billion, down 15.4 percent from last year.

In a breakdown, the number of American merchants present at the fair dropped 25 percent from last time, and that of the Middle East area was down 50 percent.

Customs statistics show China's export growth rate over the first three quarters has slowed from 33 percent last year to the current seven percent, with the aggregate volume standing at US$194 billion.

Analysts attributed the export decline to the September 11 terrorist attack in the United States, the largest export market of China, and also pointed out that China's foreign trade was least influenced by the turbulent world economic situations, especially compared with surrounding countries and regions.

Gao Yan, spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC), said that China took a series of macro-control measures early this year to boost the country's foreign trade.

Overseas merchants were confident in China's foreign trade because the country boasted a stable economic and political situation, she said.

During the fair, the 90th of its kind, export volume to European countries and regions increased by four percent. More merchants from Hong Kong, Macao, Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines were reported to have attended the fair compared with last year.

Li Huifen, Chairman of the Chamber of imports and exports on machinery and electronic equipment, said that as the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarded tariffs as the only measure to limit trade, Chinese enterprises could earn more because of their lower costs for transportation and sales.

To make best use of the opportunities provided by WTO entry, China loosened its control on export licenses to small and medium-sized enterprises, either state-owned or privately run.

Export volume by private companies and collectively owned enterprises during the fair represented 60 percent of the total.

Sun Zhenyu, vice-minister of MOFTEC, said that China would also encourage its domestic companies to improve their competitive edged through developing e-commerce.

(Xinhua News Agency October 28, 2001)