China Focus: Domestic focus offers Christmas cheer to suppliers (2)

"One of the contracts was worth 5 million yuan," Wang said.

A businesswoman from Croatia arrived in Yiwu in the middle of December. For the past 12 years she used to visit the city and place orders for Christmas decorations and accessories.

"We canceled our orders this year. I have only come to take pictures of products and get a few ideas to take back to my company," she said.

A business couple from Greece have cut their purchases by half due to insufficient demand in their country.

"It's a fact that foreign trade is not as good as it was years ago. European and American purchasing power is declining, while rising costs in China also cuts profits and reduces the competitiveness to export," said Zhuang Jian, an economist with Asian Development Bank.

Zhuang said Chinese exporters needed to change their structures.

SEEKING DOMESTIC OPPORTUNITIES

According to Zhang Handong, director of Zhejiang's research center on international trade, China needs to grow domestic demand for Christmas goods.

Revenues from the domestic market this year accounted for 35 percent of total sales at Youlide, with value predicted to reach 50 percent next Christmas, said Wang.

However, Christmas goods are not the only things he sells now.

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