Export going strong despite recalls

Barbie and Elmo

Despite earlier rumors of the opposite, China's export has not been hurt by the recent recalls and product security scares, writes the New York Times, quoting both official figures and independent experts.

China’s trade surplus with the rest of the world has already ballooned to $187 billion through September of this year, up from about $177.5 billion for all of 2006, and much of the gains have come in trade with the United States and the European Union.
Even in categories hit by high-profile recalls this year, like food and toys, exports rose sharply, according to data compiled by Global Trade Information Services, based in Columbia, S.C.

There were a few exceptions, as the German import of toys fell dramatically as did Japanese import of Chinese eel.