Cheaper yuan attracts Canton Fair buyers, but exporters won't count on it
Exporters keen to take advantage of currency's depreciation but won't count on it lasting, vowing to pass any increases on to their customers
Olu Adeleke sees the coming weeks as a golden opportunity to shop in China, now that the yuan's protracted appreciation seems to have reversed in the past two months.
Adeleke, a United States-based importer of solar equipment and environmentally friendly lighting products for Nigeria, planned to "buy many products" on his first visit to the Canton Fair in Guangzhou, the twice-yearly mega trade show that began on Tuesday.
The volatility of the yuan increased last month when the People's Bank of China allowed the currency to trade up to 2 per cent - from 1 per cent previously - above or below a reference rate against the US dollar that the central bank sets each day.
We assume the yuan will return to the appreciation track … this year
The yuan has sunk 2.7 per cent since the beginning of the year. It traded at 6.2209 per US dollar yesterday.
"[A lower yuan] will definitely attract more people to source goods in China if it keeps [falling]," said Adeleke, who was evaluating deals on the exhibition floor, where there were about 24,000 exhibitors.
He said he would raise his prices if the yuan appreciates again.
A depreciating yuan means good news for mainland exporters, but some are sceptical the trend will last.
