China Sourcing Fairs: Gifts & Home Products and Baby & Children's Products were successfully held from April 20-23 at Asia World Expo. Sourtheast Morning Post and 21st Century Business Herald were among the media that interviewed Craig Pepples, Chief Operating Officer of Global Sources. Pepples said that manufacturers from India, Vietnam and Bangladesh are still not able to replace China.

Pepples said: "This will be a year of challenges. International buyers and Chinese suppliers should work together during this difficult time. But we are confident in the outlook of China's exports." He also noted that China manufacturers have been absorbing much of the cost increases over the past few years to stay competitive. However, most of them plan to raise export prices in the next six months.

But this may not be well received by international buyers. As the US subprime mortgage crisis worsens, cost pressures will shift from retailers to the buyers. Meanwhile, China suppliers still have advantages in terms of product quality and logistics over their competitors in Southeast Asia and India.

Today, International buyers are more concerned about"total sourcing costs", which means they take into account a range of factors, including product prices, logistics, product inspection, delivery time and customs clearance. While product price is a key part of their calculation, there are other considerations.

Currently, China still has an edge in terms of lower "total sourcing costs", which its competitors like India and Bangladesh are not able to match. In face of the challenges from the emerging production centers, China is still leading the race and will remain the first choice among international buyers.