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Unwrapping China's trade flows
01 November 2006
The volume of China-made consumer goods arriving in Western ports at this time of year is remarkable. This flow is supported by traditional LCs, open account and now factoring and forfaiting. Oliver O'Connell examines these mechanisms that sustain the world's retail sector.
Each year in Britain people bemoan the fact that the build up to Christmas seems to get earlier and earlier, with decorations often appearing in shops by the end of October. Usually no one can put a definitive date on exactly when the nation's retailers begin to gear up for what should be their busiest season, but this year it can be pinpointed to the fourth of November, when the world's largest container ship, the Emma Maersk, docked carrying 45,000 tonnes of China-made Christmas gifts and other seasonal products. It turns out that Christmas presents do not come from the North Pole by sled, as Western children believe; they come from Yantian in 11,000 containers. Via Felixstowe.
The arrival of the 400 metre long Emma Maersk was well documented by the British media, all listing incredible statistics regarding the number of MP3 players (12,800) and cocktail shakers (33,000)...
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