Is it Possible to Boycott Chinese Goods ?

[Jimmy Clitheroe]

On reading up about recent Chinese history (on things like the Great Leap Forward killing more people than World War Two - and in less time, the readiness to crush any dissent quite literally under the tracks of a tank and now the inflicting of this virus on us all) I would really like to boycott buying any Chinese made goods so as not to prop up it's regime, however it seems pretty damn difficult. Right down to the beer glass I was drinking out of the other night - get to the bottom to read 'Made in China' stamped on it. It looks like it will take quite some effort and at a cost as it is pretty difficult for the free world to match the labour costs of a system that uses slave labour but I think it is a necessary, if not an essential cost to bear if we are not all to fall under even greater influence of the Chinese Communist Party.

[cashman]

i think chinese gear should be boycotted, but it aint gonna be, we ordered something online of the electric type cos ours was knackered, there was no indication were it came from at all.all there was was reviews, and they were pretty good, so we ordered it, guess what.it was CHINESE so dont see how you can boycott if its online?

[DaveinGermany]

Much as many people would like to, you'd be hard pushed to find many things regardless where they are supposedly "made", without a Chinese taint. For far to long production by national countries has been out sourced to the far east & specifically China, if you do find something made within your "Land" you can guarantee it will be prohibitively expensive & on closer inspection some of the internal components will be ...... you guessed it, Chinky made.

[Margaret Pilkington]

It is difficult to buy anything that does not come from China
I use Tattered Lace cutting dies in my craft work.....they are expensive and because they are designed by Stephanie Wightman, I thought that they were manufactured here.
Further investigation shows that they are made in China and are only put into branded packaging in this country.
I have looked at unbranded Chinese cutting dies and I can buy the unbranded, (but clearly Tattered Lace designs) for one tenth the price of the branded ones.
Now as all my crafting is to support charity and I take not one penny for resources, which does it make more sense to buy?
Obviously I am going to opt for the ones which means more money goes to the cause.

I bought a new cutting machine....thought it was made in the US....NO.....again China!

So I think that boycotting China is very difficult...it would not be difficult to slap tariffs on goods that come from there.
Then perhaps it might galvanise other countries to manufacture more of what they need.....knowing that people will look for a home made product if it is of a similar price.....and that cannot happen unless tariffs are applied to make Chinese good more expensive.

[monkey hanger]

even the name of the product is no clue anymore to its state or origin. the box its in may say made in england but whats inside it can be a different matter. car parts especially are a minefield. think we are all to blame really by looking for bargains continually.

[Margaret Pilkington]

The thing is we went through a time when we couldn't be picky.....if you are on a limited budget, then you choose what you can afford.....and the fact that China has been able to undercut every manufacturer has to have something to do with what we have bought.
I know that I have bought brands that I considered to be British and found out that although the brand was British, the product wasn't.
So, I do not think the public are entirely to blame......there has long been a climate of deception.

[Jimmy Clitheroe]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

The thing is we went through a time when we couldn't be picky.....if you are on a limited budget, then you choose what you can afford.....and the fact that China has been able to undercut every manufacturer has to have something to do with what we have bought.
I know that I have bought brands that I considered to be British and found out that although the brand was British, the product wasn't.
So, I do not think the public are entirely to blame......there has long been a climate of deception.

Indeed we have - we have all chosen to ignore the facts that people are working in awful conditions so that I can buy three pint glasses for £1. It will be really difficult to wean off buying cheap but I think it must be worth making some effort and denting the Chinese regime's increasing stranglehold on the planet. Once they reach the position of power that producing all our goods brings they will then start calling the shots worldwide big time. I think we HAVE to make the effort, we have to insist we DON'T want goods made by slave labour.

[Margaret Pilkington]

While I respect your view Jimmy(and I accept that your prognosticators for the future are accurate,because that is how I see it too)
There are those in society who have no choice but to buy cheap...or do without.
The other big thing is that for a long time deception has been practised....branded goods are portrayed with U.K. Brands.....and unless you know that these brands source their goods from China, then you will but them thinking they are UK made.
The other thing is large corporations/organisations go for cost above all else.
I know that many products used by the NHS(a huge buyer of goods) used to be produced by companies in this country.
China got on board and cut the prices to such an extent that U.K. Companies could not compete.....contracts were lost to China....meant job losses here and some companies did not survive.


There needs to be more done by the governments of countries to ensure that Goods from China are heavily tariffed....but that is no good if the manufacturing base is no longer there.
If what you want only comes from China, then how do you square that circle....tell me, because I am interested to know.

[monkey hanger]

[QUOTE=Margaret Pilkington;
There are those in society who have no choice but to buy cheap...or do without.

its not just cheap goods though. buying on line from someone you think is british is no guarentee of getting a non far eastern product. you might buy say a bosch starter motor for your car. when you get it there will be guarenteed the made in china will be on the box. same if you splash out and buy an armani shirt. get it and made in italy will not be there. made in china will be.

[Margaret Pilkington]

Yes, you are right.
At least when you shop in person you get a slim chance of trying to determine the origin of a product, but online you have little chance.

As I have said in previous posts, I think the only way China can be limited is for the government of the world to stand against it in trade terms.
But whilst they do that they have to be prepared to back their own country in getting back their manufacturing bases......and if I am honest, I cannot see the appetite for that.

[skuta]

Chinese manufacturing has already taken a big hit by this virus drama. The Chinese governments subsidy to postage costs making it free for most consumer items, won't help either because the poverty we exported to create a low-wage economy has shifted to other countries like Vietnam.

Chinese average pay has also risen, making their business environment less attractive. Cheap labour lives outside of China now. In time a shift in sectoral balances along with other economic factors will see China as a less favourable location with shrinking resources and rising costs. There's a reason physical gold is fleeing mainland China.

Our own govt. will not add tariffs to Chinese goods. They have never cared about you or your interests. They are busy brown-nosing for Chinese investment in our power and other infrastructure projects.

Meantime we get shoddy cheap Chinese fakes because Chinese folk have no concept of quality assurance or intellectual property. They're communists after all and don't think for themselves. Don't buy anything metallic. Chinese are notorious for cheap alloys made of scrap metal of various types and quality. Almost guaranteed failure.

Seems to me that the China fad will fadeout and all your cheap gear will come from a new poverty blackspot. Not right now, in time.

[Jimmy Clitheroe]

I suppose the reality is if Hitler had not been so insane and gradually imposed his vision of society on Europe instead of trying to take over at breakneck speed then we would be buying goods made in the Third Reich concentration camps as they would be cheapest. In the medium to long term there is no future in a country that increasingly becomes solely a 'consumer nation' - eventually where will the wealth and money come from to buy even the cheapest of goods ?

[Less]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Clitheroe

I suppose the reality is if Hitler had not been so insane and gradually imposed his vision of society on Europe instead of trying to take over at breakneck speed then we would be buying goods made in the Third Reich concentration camps as they would be cheapest.

Completely wrong, we wouldn't be able to work as slave labour for Hitler AND be consumers.

[Less]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Clitheroe

I suppose the reality is if Hitler had not been so insane and gradually imposed his vision of society on Europe instead of trying to take over at breakneck speed then we would be buying goods made in the Third Reich concentration camps as they would be cheapest.

Completely wrong, we would have been slave labour for Hitler anything he produced was only for the Reich.

[cashman]

Originally Posted by Less

Completely wrong, we would have been slave labour for Hitler anything he produced was only for the Reich.

have to agree 100% with that.