Coronavirus dampens Christmas spirit in China’s Yiwu export showroom with ‘no way to save this year’
- Last year, Yiwu exported around 1.92 billion yuan (US282 million) worth of Christmas products between January and October, up 23.9 per cent from the previous year
- Data for this year has not yet been released, but the evidence is bleak after the global coronavirus pandemic all but halted international business travel
At the Yiwu Fuye Christmas factory in eastern China, workers are stitching and testing out Santa Claus toys, checking they play a Christmas tune at the press of a button.
But the jingles are the only seasonal cheer in the factory in the city of Yiwu, which produces 80 per cent of Christmas consumer goods exported globally, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
Last year, Yiwu exported around 1.92 billion yuan (US282 million) worth of Christmas products between January and October, up 23.9 per cent from the previous year, according to government data.
Let’s see if the virus will return when the weather becomes cold and if it does, my next year’s business is also finished
Data for this year has not yet been released, but the anecdotal evidence is bleak after the global pandemic all but halted international business travel when many countries placed entry bans on foreigners.
“There is no way to save this year,” Yiwu Fuye Christmas factory owner Luo Jingjing told Reuters after losing almost half her clients because of the coronavirus pandemic.