China has long been in possession of a vast territory with an abundance of raw materials at its disposal. The past one hundred years has been a dynamic period with regards to the growth and change of China’s economy and a major driver of that growth has been its natural resources and to what extent they’ve been exploited more recently with regards to exporting cheap materials to the global market as well as a source of inputs for its manufacturing. The country’s major raw materials include: coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, rare earth elements, uranium, and the world’s largest hydro-power potential. As of 2010, 7% of the country’s power is hydro-generated.
As a proportion of total exports, raw materials only represents a small slice of the total of merchandise exports out of China. In 2008, agricultural raw materials were .4% of merchandise exports, fuel exports were 2.2% (up from 1.6% in 2007), and ores and metal exports were 1.7% (from TradingEconomics.com).
It is important to be aware that your sourcing experience is always going to be vulnerable to the more hidden and intangible costs and volatility of the raw materials market in China. Rules regarding resource and material costs can be changed without warning as they are effected by international trade policy both abroad and domestically as well as being intertwined with the national VAT system. With an unpredictable political and economic landscape, CPG can help you navigate the complexities of manufacturing in China. One of the keys to a good sourcing experience is securing the lowest price possible with available input prices and that’s where our services come into play.
CPG has sourced products that were made with a vast range of raw materials that include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Acrylic and other Synthetic Fibers
- Brass
- Chemicals
- Copper
- Cotton
- Fabric: woven and non-woven
- Gems
- Granite
- Iron
- Leather
- Marble and other stone
- Nylon
- Paper
- Plastics including: PE, PVC, ABS
- Precious metals
- Ramie: various blends
- Rattan and other types of reeds
- Rubber: natural and synthetic
- Silicone
- Silk
- Silver
- Steel
- Straw and other vegetable fibers
- Wax
- Wood