Effects of environmental policies begin to show
There has been much talk about the possible repercussions for the leather industry from China’s decision to implement new environmental policies and maybe the effects are already beginning to be seen. According to recent reports, the Asian country’s exports of semi-finished and finished leather plummeted in 2007, while imports of semi-finished leather increased significantly in terms of value.
Reports state that China exported 32,000 tons of semi-finished leather last year worth $55 million — an incredible 45% lower in terms of volume and 54% lower in terms of value compared with 2006. It was a similar story in terms of finished leather, too, as exports fell 35% in volume to 80,000 tons, and by 32% in value to $1.12 billion.
With regards to imports, semi-finished leather crept 3% higher in volume to 790,000 tons and the value rose a significant 22% to $1.25 billion, while the volume of finished leather imports increase a massive 9% to 290,000 tons worth $3.09 billion.
