East China’s Jiangsu province has taken various measures since the start of this year to facilitate sales of export products in domestic market, as part of efforts to stabilize foreign trade amid slump in global trade due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy.
At the liquid chemical terminal in Xuwei District, Lianyungang city, Jiangsu Si’erbang Petrochemical Co., Ltd., the largest domestic manufacturer and exporter of acrylonitrile, was seen loading 5,000 tons of acrylonitrile products onto freight vessels to be ready for shipment to the downstream manufacturers in Ningbo city, Zhejiang province.
Acrylonitrile is the basic raw material for the production of carbon fiber and other new materials, with high added value and wide application fields. In recent years, Si’erbang has witnessed increasing volume in the export of acrylonitrile year by year.
Since late March, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Si’erbang reported a declining export volume of acrylonitrile by more than 40% month on month.
Battered by the sluggish overseas markets and the high cost of international logistics, the department of commerce of Lianyungang City encouraged the company to explore the domestic market, and it was not long before Si’erbang stabilized its resumption of work and production.
"By opening up the domestic market, the newly added orders have made up for the decline in exports with demand increased by nearly 2,000 tons per month. The current production capacity has increased by about 10% compared with last month."said by Zhou Yingying, Marketing Manager of Jiangsu Si’erbang Petrochemical Co., Ltd..
"Through policy support such as export credit guarantee we will stabilize customers and ensure the market in the next step, we will match key foreign trade enterprises with large-scale retail enterprises and domestic high-quality brands to further stabilize and expand the domestic market share."said by Yang Shanbo, Official, Department of Commerce of Lianyungang City.
Suzhou Flextronics, a large producer of electronic products, has suffered a decline in foreign trade orders since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company faced financial pressure as it wanted to develop new products to tap the domestic market. Suzhou Customs allowed enterprises of domestic sales to postpone tax payment and reduce risk deposits to help them overcome the difficulties of the capital chain.
In the first quarter, Suzhou helped to reduce 1.2 billion yuan in margin reduction so as to ease the capital flow pressure for the local enterprises.
"Through the implementation of domestic sales facilitation measures the companies are more confident to develop the domestic market and recoup funds ,so as to provide stronger protection and support for the next stage of development."said by Du Jian, Officer, Suzhou Customs.
Suzhou Flextronics has recovered its production lines that were impacted by the epidemic. Its automotive electronic components and communications products are receiving a steady stream of domestic sales orders, and the company's domestic sales have increased by 50% year-on-year.
"The new orders will ensure sustained production in the upcoming two to three months. " said by Zhao Zhijun, Senior Logistics Manager, Suzhou Flextronics.
Since April, Jiangsu has issued a series of policies to stabilize foreign-funded enterprises and foreign trade through the shift to domestic markets.
