Issued by: Communications Services
Imported footwear, primarily from the East, continues its assault on the embattled local footwear industry.
Footwear imports increased by 76,6% during 1995 compared to the previous year, overtaking local production for the first time. And, according to the Footwear Manufacturer's Federation of South Africa (FMF), foreign footwear now accounts for 52,1% of the local market.
The FMF, in its 1995/96 annual report notes that footwear from China and Hong Kong alone enjoys a 42,9% share of the South African market.
FMF Director Dennis Linde writes in the report that at the beginning of 1996 there was a drop of 47% in the order position of the organisation's members compared with that of 1995. As a result, for the first two months of 1996 production declined by a further 14,5% compared with the same period last year.
In 1995 as a whole, production dropped to its lowest level since 1975. The situation has lead to the closure of a further 25 factories, bringing total closures since 1989 to 143, with employment as its lowest since 1963, standing at 19 210, compared with 27 500 in 1989.
Linde says the FMF's many deputations and proposals to government pleading for measures to halt the collapse of the industry have had little effect.
"The State itself acknowledge that the problems facing the footwear sector deserve serious consideration and put forward its own proposals, which included the introduction of a voluntary export restraint (VER) agreement with China," he says. "Yet to date none of their proposals have materialised."
Furthermore, although the FMF has been able to prove dumping, matters of a "highly technical" nature prevented the Board of Tariffs and Trade from proceeding against the body's petition for anti-dumping duties on footwear imported from China and Hong Kong.
He urges government to expedite implementation of measures such as the VER and the reinstatement of specific duties and quotas.
Finally, he says trade unions, which have been represented by the many industry approaches to government, can contribute to the upliftment of the industry by encouraging their members to become more productive through active participation in the new education and training programmes of the Footwear Industry Training Board and by ensuring that in labour matters manufacturers are allowed to operate under conditions which permit much greater flexibility.
Issued by: Communications Services On behalf of: Footwear Manufacturer's Federation For further information contact: Dennis Linde Ph: (041) 55-2517 or Barbara Bester Ph: (011) 463-1011 Fax: (011) 463-1323 Cell: 082 448 5625 June 18 1996