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How to do market research on China

China has rapidly grown to become one of the world’s largest economies with a huge demand for imported goods and services. It is one of New Zealand’s top five export destinations.

The size of the population (1.3 billion) and rising incomes mean that there is potentially a significant market for a wide range of goods and services from New Zealand. However, China can be a difficult country to do business in or export to. The business and regulatory environments are quite different from New Zealand, income levels vary considerably and there is still only a relatively small percentage of the population that can afford to buy New Zealand products.

This guide covers a range of practical and efficient tools you can use to find the information quickly and at little cost. It includes a practical introduction to using internet research and online search engines, and links to online resources specifically relevant to exporting.

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Researching export opportunities tips

Examining a country’s trade statistics helps you to find out what products a country imports, where products are being imported from and whether the market for a particular product is growing or shrinking. It is also important to gather information about the goods and services produced or manufactured in China.
Demographic statistics can provide valuable information about potential customers and their spending patterns. Statistics such as the population make-up, per capita income and spending patterns can be important indicators of market potential.
While China is one country, it should not be looked at as one market as there are significant regional differences and also major differences between urban and rural areas. Cities and provinces should be regarded as individual markets.
It is also important to find more detailed information about your potential competitors, not just how many there are and who they are. Finding detailed and accurate information about Chinese companies can be difficult.
As well as researching your potential competitors, it is just as important to research any companies you are considering doing business with to ensure they are reliable. Performing due diligence in China can be difficult, partly because of the distance and language barriers. Also, many aspects of business are very different in China.
China is a challenging environment for protection and enforcement of intellectual property (IP) rights. If you are considering doing business in China you should investigate the merits of an IP protection plan as part of your strategy.