by Nguyen Hung

Beijing also relocates to increase profits by taking advantage of local labor. Experts warn Hanoi: danger of upsetting balance of trade between the two countries, as well as flooding of low-priced and poor quality goods. Risks to public health and the environment.

Hanoi (AsiaNews) - An increasing number of Chinese companies -to maintain high profits- decide to relocate their production to third countries, including Vietnam, thus reducing labour costs. Once an ideal destination for investment, now the Land of the Dragon is setting the trend with its large companies and multinationals seeking new locations for production. Hanoi, together with the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, offer better opportunities and more competitive prices to businesses; all, however, with the risk of serious environmental hazards and savage exploitation of the local workforce. Added to these already serious issues, is the obvious economic-commercial imbalance between China and Vietnam.

According to the Chinese Ministry for Commerce a third of companies producing clothing, hats and shoes in China, to "the considerable human resources and a cheap workforce." However, in recent times there is an ever-growing flow of companied leaving China for other countries in the region, particularly South-East Asia, with serious repercussions for the nation.

Chinese and Taiwanese companies produce pollutant toxic substances that other realities, including Vietnam, are unable to dispose of properly. Moreover, the phenomenon upsets the balance of trade between Beijing and Hanoi; an Economics expert explains that in the first nine months of 2012 the passage of goods from China yielded 20.7 billion dollars, while in the opposite direction the total volume was 9.4 billion dollars. The deficit "is obvious", says the Economist, and it is causing unemployment in Vietnam.

Than Hai, Deputy Director of the Vietnamese Department for imports and exports of the Ministry of industry, confirms that "China is our biggest trading partner," and a rapidly expanding "nation" in the area. Hanoi "imports more goods and products", including "two-thirds" of the raw material for the production of clothing and other genres. The problem, experts warn, is that the low price means "a very bad quality" both in foodstuffs - which are invading the stalls of the markets- as well as in goods. Vietnam risks being transformed into the "industrial wasteland" of Chinese companies.

 

• VIETNAM
• –
• CHINA
• companies
• industry
• production
• pollution
• labour
• force