From 1998 to 2007, in a decade, the trade volume between China and Russia increased nearly 10 times. In 2008, the bilateral trade volume between China and Russia was 56.8 billion US dollars, increasing by 18% year-on-year, but affected by the international financial crisis, the growth rate of garment factories was lower than that in 2007 by 44.3%.
In the first half of 2008, the production of work uniforms in China-Russia's bilateral economic and trade cooperation developed rapidly, but in the second half, the impact of the international financial crisis began to show, slowing down the growth rate of the trade volume between the two countries. In 2009, entering the "Year of the Ox" in China, could Sino-Russian trade reverse the situation and become "bullish" again? What should Chinese enterprises exporting to Russia do? How can Chinese goods gain recognition from the Russian market and consumers? It was learned that Igor Anatolyevich Kharitonov, Chairman of the Russian Fashion Designers Council, had come from Moscow to Beijing and was conducting market research at Yabaolu. Mr. Igor, who originally had no media interview scheduled, took nearly an afternoon out of his tight schedule for an exclusive interview.
Interviewer: Mr. Igor, what is your view on the decline in the growth rate of Sino-Russian trade, and is your visit to China related to this?
Igor: Overall, I very much hope that Sino-Russian trade will develop as quickly as possible. However, the global spread of the international financial crisis has impacted all economies, and it is unavoidable that Sino-Russian bilateral trade will be affected. The world economy needs time to recover, and Sino-Russian trade also needs time. How to get through the financial crisis? Both Russia and China have the responsibility to help the entire world get through the financial crisis, which means further expanding mutual imports. I believe we can safely get through the financial crisis.
The purpose of this visit is to learn from China and see if there are any good business opportunities to promote economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. I am looking for further opportunities for cooperation. What I am doing now personally is helping some Chinese companies establish offices and representative offices in Moscow or other places, while at the same time introducing some Russian companies into China. I mainly do bridge-building work.
Interviewer: We noticed that over the past ten years, the Russian economy has made great progress and its economic strength has greatly increased. As one of the major powers in the world, Russia is full of many development opportunities. China, as a developing country, after thirty years of reform and opening up, has also achieved significant economic development, with many commercial and trade opportunities. Now that the global economy is in a financial crisis, we would like to know the attitude of Russian business circles and economic circles towards strengthening economic exchanges with China?
Igor: Two years ago and last year were respectively the Year of Friendship between China and Russia and the Year of Friendship between Russia and China, which was very good. In my personal opinion, to further strengthen economic cooperation between China and Russia, the first step is mutual understanding and learning about each other's cultures, which will lead to deeper and broader cooperation possibilities. The Russian government is taking some favorable measures to promote the development of bilateral trade and strengthen bilateral economic cooperation.