With the downward pressure on China-Africa trade easing, e-commerce has become a catalyst for development

The 128th Canton Fair is under way. What is happening to Africa's trade needs in the face of global situations such as the COVID-19 epidemic? A press conference on China-Africa trade exchanges at the Canton Fair held in Guangzhou on Monday brought together Chinese and African experts, chamber of Commerce representatives and business leaders to discuss the current development situation, trend and future prospects of China-Africa trade.

It is learned that African countries still need all kinds of materials needed to fight the epidemic, and the demand for machinery and processing equipment needed by small-scale manufacturing industries is obviously higher than before. In addition, some buyers are more concerned about "new technologies" suitable for their own economic development.

African countries still need to fight the disease

According to the data disclosed at the press conference, in the first half of this year, the impact of the epidemic has exerted great downward pressure on China-Africa trade, which fell by 19.1% year-on-year in the first five months of this year. In June, China-Africa trade showed signs of recovery, with exports to Africa, imports from Africa and bilateral trade increasing by 3.2%, 16.2% and 8.6% respectively month-on-month. From January to June, China's industry-wide direct investment in Africa reached us $1.72 billion, up 1.7% year on year. At present, the overall downward pressure has slowed down, and the "shuffle" effect brought by the epidemic has made some enterprises realize counter-trend growth.

"From January to September this year, our company's export volume of high-performance alkaline batteries increased by 7.68%, among which Congo alkaline batteries increased by 103.98% year-on-year. Through our expansion efforts, we have also successfully developed new markets such as South Sudan and Liberia." Guangzhou Hutou Battery Group Co. LTD deputy general manager Zhou Songyi said at the meeting.

As early as 1957, Tiger First brand batteries have been exported to the African market, and now foreign trade accounts for more than 80% of the company's sales, while the African market accounts for nearly 80% of the overseas market.

Huo Jiangtao, vice President and secretary General of the Africa Guangdong General Chamber of Commerce, said that according to the results of the chamber's research, African countries still need all kinds of materials, including protective clothing and medical facilities, to fight the epidemic. Secondly, due to the impact of the epidemic, most countries encourage domestic manufacturing, and the demand for machinery and processing equipment needed by small-scale manufacturers is obviously higher than before. Especially, products closely related to daily life needs, such as agricultural machinery or food processing, are highly sought after. Some buyers pay more attention to the "new technology" suitable for their own economic development and pay attention to experience guidance and technical support.

There is still huge potential for cooperation in financial support and other areas

"The number of Chinese enterprises investing in Africa is no longer limited to large enterprises and state-owned enterprises. More and more small and medium-sized enterprises are investing in Africa in various fields." In addition to trade, there are a lot of opportunities in mining, manufacturing, consumer and processing sectors on the continent, Huo said. At the same time, big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and other technologies have also played an important role in epidemic situation tracking, detection and analysis, virus tracing, prevention and treatment, and resource allocation in Africa. During the epidemic, China-Africa digital economic cooperation has enjoyed rapid development.

"There is still huge potential for mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Africa in such areas as trade, infrastructure, financial support and market opening." "However, it is undeniable that due to the impact of the epidemic and the control measures, Africa has increasingly prominent problems in terms of logistics and transportation difficulties, declining domestic security, declining willingness of buyers to pay, rejection of goods and rising bankruptcy risk," Huo said. Also, currency risks are rising in the current economic context."

Huo jiangtao summarized relevant professionals to put forward risk-averse Suggestions for relevant trading enterprises, so as to help trade enterprises to fight risks and strengthen their internal strength, and to halt the progress of non-projects without being affected by the epidemic. Huo said that it is recommended to track key risk information of target countries (regions) and related industries in a timely manner. Comprehensively review and evaluate relevant orders in hand to strengthen customer management; Attach importance to transaction process tracking and keep timely and smooth communication with buyers; Adopt secure settlement method to reasonably avoid the risk of exchange rate and exchange restriction.

The Canton Fair promotes the electronicalization of China-Africa trade

According to data released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in August, some e-commerce platforms in Africa have seen triple-digit growth in business volume since the outbreak. A growing number of African commodities such as Ethiopian coffee, Mali butter, Cameroonian white pepper, Comoran vanilla, Madagascar saffron and Senegalese peanuts enter the Chinese market through cross-border e-commerce.

"E-commerce will be a catalyst for further development of China-Africa trade." Liu Jisen, executive dean of The Africa Research Institute at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, said the technological revolution will save transaction costs, and the "cloud-based" Canton Fair will become the norm. China-africa trade is likely to go electronic. Guangdong has long been an important window for China-Africa trade, accounting for about a quarter of China's total imports and exports to Africa. Guangdong should seize the opportunity to consolidate its position in China-Africa trade.

Thanks to e-commerce platforms set up by Chinese companies and mobile payment technologies and smart phone devices, the African continent is building a brand new e-commerce ecosystem. Rwanda has sold 3,000 packets of "secone light" on an e-commerce platform jointly built by Rwanda and Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba.

James Kimonio, Rwanda's ambassador to China, said in a recent interview that he was very excited about Guangdong's plans to further promote e-Commerce and cross-border trade between China and Africa, and hoped to establish mutually beneficial partnerships in this area in the future.