Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, December 10, 1994 TAG: 9412120056
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CLAUDINE WILLIAMS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
U.S. companies have to understand it is not enough to assess the business risk; you also have to assess the political risk, said Huddle, chairman of the World Trade Alliance of the Blue Ridge.
"The government is supposed to issue visas so they don't overtax on goods," Huddle said of China. "However, they have not done a good job of monitoring their visas. Many companies have been issued visas and accepted into the country only to find out that China has exceeded its quota." Some have discovered the visas were fraudulent, Huddle said.
Also, building codes and fire codes are selectively enforced in China. A foreign investor may face stricter regulations than a Chinese competitor.
China is a planned economy, not an open economy. The government spends money on products it believes are necessary to its welfare.
"If you are not on the strategic needs list, the chances of selling your product" are slim, said Randy Frazier, president of R. Frazier Inc., a Salem-based recycler of electronic equipment.
His company began doing business in China in 1989, exporting scrap copper. In 1992 it began exporting computers.
"We thought the economy was robust and would take anything, but personal computers were not on the list," Frazier said. Computers finally made the list this year, he said.
"My experiences with China have all been good," said Joe Robinson, international export manager for the Virginia Department of Economic Development's Blue Ridge region. "We just need to understand culturally how to deal with them."
by CNB