Traders to boycott Chinese goods; cut imports by Rs 1 lakh crore by Dec 2021
CAIT says more than 40,000 trader bodies representing 7 crore retailers and wholesellers in the country have agreed to join the movement for a total boycott of Chinese products
- Jun 10, 2020,
- Updated Jun 10, 2020 2:18 PM IST
Retail and wholesale traders across India on Wednesday launched a campaign to boycott import of Chinese goods with an aim to reduce imports of upto Rs 1 lakh crore ($ 13.3 bn) by December 2021. Under the aegis of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), a preliminary list of 3,000 items has been prepared which account for significant imports from China but where local alternatives are available. Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at nearly $ 81.6 billion in 2019-20 with China enjoying a trade surplus of $48.66 billion. Imports from China during the fiscal stood at $ 65.26 billion, a decline of 7.2 percent over 2018-19.
"In 2001, imports from China was at just $2 billion. It has ballooned to $70 billion today. In 20 years, the growth has been a phenomenal 3,500 percent and clearly shows they have a well thought out strategy to capture India's retail market," said Praveen Khandelwal, secretary general, CAIT. "I must admit it was an error on the part of business community, traders as also the government that we did not look at alternatives earlier which allowed China to become this big. It is high time now and corrective measures are needed."
CAIT said more than 40,000 trader bodies representing 7 crore retailers and wholesellers in the country have agreed to join the movement for a total boycott of Chinese products. Further it said there was a visible change in purchasing pattern among consumers as well who do not want to buy Chinese goods as readily as before.
Retail and wholesale traders across India on Wednesday launched a campaign to boycott import of Chinese goods with an aim to reduce imports of upto Rs 1 lakh crore ($ 13.3 bn) by December 2021. Under the aegis of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), a preliminary list of 3,000 items has been prepared which account for significant imports from China but where local alternatives are available. Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at nearly $ 81.6 billion in 2019-20 with China enjoying a trade surplus of $48.66 billion. Imports from China during the fiscal stood at $ 65.26 billion, a decline of 7.2 percent over 2018-19.
"In 2001, imports from China was at just $2 billion. It has ballooned to $70 billion today. In 20 years, the growth has been a phenomenal 3,500 percent and clearly shows they have a well thought out strategy to capture India's retail market," said Praveen Khandelwal, secretary general, CAIT. "I must admit it was an error on the part of business community, traders as also the government that we did not look at alternatives earlier which allowed China to become this big. It is high time now and corrective measures are needed."
CAIT said more than 40,000 trader bodies representing 7 crore retailers and wholesellers in the country have agreed to join the movement for a total boycott of Chinese products. Further it said there was a visible change in purchasing pattern among consumers as well who do not want to buy Chinese goods as readily as before.