Eighty-Seven Percent of Mainland China Leather Garment Makers Expect to Raise Prices in 2007 -- Labor, Leather Costs Cited

Global Sources

2007-02-01 16:39 1926

HONG KONG, Feb. 1 /Xinhua-PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Eighty-seven percent of mainland China's leather garment manufacturers plan to raise export prices in 2007, according to Global Sources' (Nasdaq: GSOL) China Sourcing Report: Leather Garments ( http://www.chinasourcingreports.com ).

(Logo: http://www.prnasia.com/sa/200701111135.jpg )

"Due to higher import taxes, the price of raw leather shipped into mainland China is projected to rise this year," said Global Sources' general manager of Content Development Michael Kleist. "Manufacturers also expect to be hit by the revaluation of the yuan and rising labor costs.

"Despite this, most makers expect to limit price increases to 10 percent or less to compete for overseas orders."

Among mainland China leather garment manufacturers surveyed for the China Sourcing Report:

-- 6 percent say they plan to raise prices by 10 to 15 percent;

-- 52 percent expect price increases of between 5 and 10 percent; and

-- 42 percent plan price increases of less than 5 percent.

Mainland China Leather Garment Manufacturers Move Upmarket, Targeting EU and US Markets

"Russia is currently the top importer of mainland China-made leather garments. However, many manufacturers are reducing shipments there due to new tax policies which are hampering mainland China's exporters," said Kleist.

"A large percentage of suppliers are now producing higher-end models and shifting their export focus to the EU and US markets."

Among surveyed manufacturers:

-- 40 percent say they will target exports to the EU;

-- 33 percent plan to focus on the US; and

-- 12 percent are planning to target Asia.

The remaining 15 percent say they plan to focus on non-EU European countries, the Middle East, Africa and other regions.

In-Factory Interviews, Price Forecasts and New Leather Garment Models

The 127-page China Sourcing Report: Leather Garments provides proprietary market information from in-person factory visits to 15 manufacturers and interviews with 62 more suppliers.

It includes a Product Gallery featuring 179 of the most popular export models, with key specifications and full-color pictures.

The report's surveys, price trends and supply forecasts help buyers make better-informed purchasing decisions.

China Sourcing Reports ( http://www.chinasourcingreports.com ) are part of Global Sources' sourcing and product information services. These include Global Sources trade magazines, Global Sources Online ( http://www.globalsources.com ), Global Sources Direct ( http://www.globalsourcesdirect.com ) and the China Sourcing Fairs ( http://www.chinasourcingfair.com ). For more information, visit http://www.corporate.globalsources.com .

China Sourcing Report: Leather Garments is available at http://www.chinasourcingreports.com/Leather-Garments .

Information about Greater China leather garment suppliers and products can be found at http://www.globalsources.com/manufacturers/Leather-Garment.html .

About Global Sources

Global Sources is a leading business-to-business (B2B) media company and a primary facilitator of two-way trade with Greater China. The core business is facilitating trade from Greater China to the world, using a wide range of English-language media. The other key business segment facilitates trade from the world to Greater China using Chinese-language media.

The company provides sourcing information to volume buyers and integrated marketing services to suppliers. It helps a community of over 544,000 active buyers source more profitably from complex, overseas supply markets. With the goal of providing the most effective ways possible to advertise, market and sell, Global Sources enables suppliers to sell to hard-to-reach buyers in 230 countries.

The company offers the most extensive range of media and export marketing services in the industries it serves. It delivers information on 1.8 million products and more than 130,000 suppliers annually through 11 online marketplaces, 10 monthly magazines, over 100 sourcing research reports and 14 trade shows, including six China Sourcing Fairs. Suppliers receive more than 8 million sales leads annually from buyers through Global Sources Online ( http://www.globalsources.com ) alone.

Global Sources has been facilitating global trade for 35 years. In mainland China it has over 1,500 team members in 44 locations, and a community of over 1 million registered online users and magazine readers for

Chinese-language media.

Global Sources Press Contact in Asia:

Camellia So

Tel: +852-2555-5021

Email: cso@globalsources.com

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Global Sources Press Contact in U.S.:

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