Agence France Presse
BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - China's growing economy threatens to harm its poorestneighbors, as low-cost products swamp the markets of countries such as Bhutan andBangladesh, leaving exporters there with few profitable lines of business, according to aUnited Nations Development Program (UNDP) report cited by the Wall Street Journal.The report said that the least developed countries in Asia have liberalized their marketsmuch more than poor countries elsewhere, but they have failed to match China'ssuccess.'We appreciate the stunning growth performance of China, which is a source ofinspiration for others,' the newspaper quoted UN assistant secretary-general HafizPasha as saying.'(But the poorest Asian countries) are vulnerable to competition from Chinese imports,while they are also unable to access the Chinese market because they don't haveproducts that China needs, like high-tech and capital goods,' he added.The UNDP report argued that the growing strength of China's low-cost production ofgoods like shoes and furniture poses a much bigger problem to poorer countries thatdepend on heavily on lower-end industries than to producers from the US and Europe,who have complained that they are being unfairly priced out of the market, thenewspaper said.Citing Pasha, the newspaper said the UNDP is looking at a two-pronged solution,involving providing aid to affected countries to find new industries to support theireconomies, and encouraging wealthier nations -- including China - to give special tradetreatment to products of the poorest countries.
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