Visa-restrictions hitting nationwide

Wenzhou via WikipediaThe Los Angeles Times gives a good overview of the effects of the ongoing visa restrictions in China for the whole nation, especially some of the regional hot spots. Reports about dropping business activity are coming from everywhere. From Yiwu:

The government is now requiring business-visa applicants to submit papers bearing official stamps from local governments and the hotels where they will be staying. What's more, foreigners can no longer use Hong Kong as an easy gateway to enter mainland China, as many have done for years.

"You know, there are many hotel reservation websites that cannot provide such stamps," said Jiang Fangzheng, assistant manager at Yiwu Hotel.

From Weihai:

But with the new visa regulations, half a dozen of Jin's customers haven't been able to come recently. That's left several containers of his products sitting in a warehouse or on the docks, Jin says. Last week, he closed his vegetable-processing plant and laid off 80 workers.

"I thought that with the Olympics, I would have a good year of business," he said. "But the reality is just the opposite."

From Wenzhou:

Wang Yueying, a native of Wenzhou, an entrepreneurial hot spot in eastern China, sat behind the counter of her store, tying a ribbon on a gold Christmas ornament. She said only about 20% of her business came from repeat orders on the Web. The rest were from new customers or those who want to deal in person.

"The products are all selling kind of slow," Wang said. Of the Olympics, she said sheepishly: "Yeah, it's not been good for business here."