With a decline in Chinese items, sales of indigenous products spiked as traders decided to procure items sourced from local manufacturers.

The sale of Chinese goods has witnessed a major drop in the run-up to Diwali as about 60% less Chinese products were sold this year. However, Indians still purchased Chinese goods worth about Rs 3,200 crore while items worth Rs 8,000 crore were sold in the country during the Diwali last year, industry body CAIT said in a statement. “The consumers now understand that Chinese goods, though maybe cheaper, have no longer life and therefore does not carry a guarantee … this festival season has given a big jolt to China,” CAIT said. The slip in sales is a testimony to change in the goods purchasing pattern, Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary-General, CAIT, added.

Sales of indigenous goods spike

With a decline in Chinese items, sales of indigenous products spiked as traders decided to procure items sourced from local manufacturers. A sharp drop was seen in Chinese items such as gifting, electrical gadgets and other items, fancy lights, kitchenware and appliances, plastic items, idols of Indian Gods, home decoration goods, toys, wall hangings, lamps, home furnishing items, footwear, garments and apparels etc, according to CAIT survey conducted in 21 cities. “About 85% of traders agreed that they have witnessed a decline in sales of Chinese products during this Diwali festival. Rest of the 15% traders were of the view that Chinese goods still have a market in India,” CAIT said.

CAIT has been lobbying against the sale of Chinese goods and had urged customers last year to boycott Chinese goods. There was about a 30% decline in Chinese items purchases last year, CAIT said. In August this year, CAIT had sought high custom duties of up to 500% on goods imported from China to de-incentivize the import of Chinese items. “The trade gap between India and China is quite alarming and has become another reason for the traders to give prominence to Indian goods in place of Chinese goods,” Praveen Khandelwal added.