Bowing to a flurry of protests from the Chinese government and toy associations, and perhaps more to the point to the strong dissatisfaction of its own domestic toy importers and sellers, the government of India has finally decided to allow Chinese toys with global security institution verification to enter the Indian market.
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Chinese toy makers are welcoming the new policy, saying it is an effective restraint on protectionism in international trade, and will help them boost orders at the Canton Trade Fair in April.
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On January 23, the Indian government suspended the import of toys from China for a period of six months, triggering strong dissatisfaction in China and concerns over protectionism under global financial crisis. China’s Ministry of Commerce (MoC), the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Light Industrial Products and Arts-Crafts, and the China Toy Association laid siege to the Indian government, and it was rumored that China might drag India before the Dispute Settlement Body of the WTO.
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"The MoC and the China Toy Association paid great attention to this matter. With their efforts it has been finally solved before the Canton Fair, which is good news for toy makers. But this time India permits only toys with security verification to enter the Indian market, adding to the costs of Chinese toy exporters," said Li Chaoxin, general manager of Guangdong Qingchu Toy Co.
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Liu Ziqin, export business director of Nanjing Tengsheng Toy Co., said that although exports to India accounted for only a small part of the company’s total, India’s ban on Chinese toys would influence the company’s sales during the global financial crisis. The quick settlement of this issue helps to prevent other countries and regions from following India to set trade barriers against Chinese toys.
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Zhang Yi, a Beijing lawyer who deals with cases concerning China-India trade disputes, believes the Chinese government made great efforts to solve this issue. Due to the increasing number of trade disputes between the two, MoC officials will go to India soon for further consultation.
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The cancellation of the Indian ban on Chinese toys also has something to do with a steep increase in domestic toy prices and the dissatisfaction of Indian toy industry. According to Indian media, since the ban was implemented, the inventories of Indian toy importers and retailers had begun to decrease, jacking up toy prices on the Indian market.
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