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Carrie Lee

KUNMING has never relied too heavily on selling to the world, but the city is now aggressively promoting its exports.

  ''In the past, we didn't do a lot of promotion on trade. Since comrade Deng's [patriarch Deng Xiaoping] visit to the south, we have been developing in this direction,'' said mayor's assistant Huang Weimin.

  ''The annual Kunming Exports Commodities Fair will make Kunming better known as an international supplier, although now some places in or outside of the country don't know it very well,'' he said.

   Last year, the city posted exports worth 1.32 billion yuan (about HK$1.17 billion), up 70.4 per cent on 1992.

  That represented 6.4 per cent of Kunming's industrial production, up 1.6 per cent from the previous year.

  ''This year we are sure to do better than last year. The global economy is improving. Banks have also relaxed loans,'' said Kunming Municipal Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Commission chief engineer Li Fuhua.

   He said the city's export growth last year had been restricted by the poor global economic climate and Beijing's macro-economic controls which led to a temporary tightening of capital for enterprises.

  Mr Li said the prospects for Kunming's exports are now looking bright.

  ''We have quite an abundance of raw materials. Now our technology is advancing, we have more capital, and we also adopt new management concepts from abroad. We are now making more high-quality products suitable for export,'' he said.

   Most of Kunming's exports are industrial goods, petrochemical, and agricultural products. They are exported mostly to Hong Kong, Japan, Southeast Asia and Japan. The city is also active in border trade with neighbouring countries Vietnam, Burma and Laos.

  In 1992, 30 companies in the city were engaged in border trade, generating 310 million yuan of trade, representing a 120 per cent increase on the previous year.

  The government has been working to provide support for the city's trade. The Kunming International Trade Centre, completed last July, is the venue for the annual Kunming Exports Commodities Fair.

  It is a modern building with a gross floor area of 95,794 square metres, of which 93,660 sq metres is the main exhibition area.



World markets find favour as industries seek outside growth