Manufacturers at China’s biggest trade show remain cautious on the outlook for the domestic and global economy and say they are unlikely to increase employment significantly, despite some indicators pointing to a rebound in this crucial sector.
在中国最大的贸易展会上，参展制造商对国内和国际经济前景仍持谨慎态度，并表示不大可能大举增加人手，尽管有些指标显示这一关键行业已经出现了反弹。
Output growth in the manufacturing and construction sector rose from 6.1 per cent in the last quarter of 2016 to 6.4 per cent in the first quarter of this year, helping the Chinese economy expand at a slightly faster pace than expected, according to government data released on Monday.
根据周一发布的政府数据，制造及建筑等行业的产出增长率从2016年第四季度的6.1%升至今年第一季度的6.4%，帮助中国经济实现了略高于预期的增速。
Last month’s purchasing managers’ index suggested March was the first month since 2012 in which Chinese factories had not shed jobs.
3月份的制造业采购经理人指数(PMI)显示，工厂用工量自2012年以来首次停止减少。
But factory managers at the semi-annual Canton Fair in Guangzhou, which is expected to attract 20,000 manufacturers and 200,000 buyers from around the world, said they were still concerned about the patchy nature of the global economy as well as domestic overcapacity, despite stronger growth in sectors such as smartphones and government-linked infrastructure.
但在每半年一次的广交会(Canton Fair)上，参展的工厂经理们表示，他们仍对全球经济的不均衡特征以及国内产能过剩感到担心，尽管智能手机、与政府相关的基础设施等行业出现了更强劲的增长。本届广交会估计吸引了来自世界各地的2万家制造商和20万家采购商。
“The market for electric scooters is saturated and there are still too many producers so overcapacity is a problem,” said Frank Wang, a sales manager for Aima, one of the biggest makers of the electric scooters ubiquitous in China’s cities. “There is pressure on pricing and market share.”
“目前电动车市场已经饱和，生产商还是太多，所以产能过剩是一个问题，”中国最大的电动车制造商之一爱玛(Aima)的销售经理Frank Wang说，“产品定价和市场份额方面都有压力。”电动车在中国的城市里无处不在。
He said Aima, which produces 4m scooters a year, is cutting back on capital expenditure as it tries to mitigate flat sales growth.
他说，每年生产400万台电动车的爱玛正在削减资本支出，试图缓解销售增长乏力的影响。
“We’re not laying off workers but salary growth is not as fast as in the past and many factories in Wuxi [in Jiangsu province] are facing the same situation,” he said.
“我们目前没有裁员，但工资增长没有以前那么快了，无锡的许多工厂也面临着相同处境，”他说。
Nanfu, China’s biggest producer of alkaline batteries, is also in consolidation mode.
中国最大的碱性电池生产商南孚(Nanfu)也进入了整合模式。
“Our long-term focus is on product development and marketing,” said Russel Kong, international business director of the company, which was previous owned by US consumer goods group Procter & Gamble. “I don’t think we will expand capacity significantly.”
“长期而言，我们注重产品开发和市场营销，”南孚国际业务总监Russel Kong说，“我认为，我们不会大幅扩大产能。”南孚之前隶属美国消费品集团宝洁(P&G)旗下。
Mr Kong is expecting moderate sales growth of about 5 per cent this year, similar to last year, and with China’s years of rapid expansion now in the past, Fujian-based Nanfu is trying to expand its global business.
Russel Kong预期今年销售将温和增长约5%，与去年相当。由于中国经济快速增长已成过去时，总部设在福建省的南孚正在努力拓展全球业务。
“The international market is a big cake and we want to take a small piece,” he said. “By competing with Duracell, Energizer and others, it forces us to get to the same level as them in terms of quality.”
“国际市场是个大蛋糕，我们想从中切一小块，”他说，“要与金霸王(Duracell)、劲量(Energizer)等竞争，我们在质量方面就得与它们旗鼓相当。”
While few factories are planning big increases in their workforce, some manufacturers, such as those making advanced electronic goods or supplying government infrastructure projects, are seeing stronger sales growth and boosting capacity.
虽然没有多少工厂计划大量增加人手，但一些制造商，比如制造先进电子产品或承建政府基础设施项目的公司，销售增长更为强劲，产能也有所提升。
Panda, which makes smart TVs and smartphones, says business is booming as consumers in China and key export markets such as Southeast Asia and India upgrade to bigger and better screens.
智能电视和智能手机生产商熊猫(Panda)表示，随着中国及其主要出口市场东南亚、印度等地的消费者升级换代、购买屏幕更大更好的产品，其业务正在蓬勃发展。
“We’re expanding production by 20 per cent this year to meet growing demand,” said Liu Quan, a deputy general manager at the Nanjing-based company.
这家总部在南京的公司的一位管理者说：“今年我们会把产量提高20%，以满足增长的需求。”
But with factory wages in China having risen rapidly over the past decade, the company is reluctant to expand its workforce significantly, preferring to expand production through the increased use of industrial robots.
但由于中国制造业工资在过去十年迅速上升，该公司不愿意大量增加员工数量，更倾向于通过更多使用工业机器人来扩大产量。
It is a similar story for Huyu, which makes transformers and other electrical products for the national grid and other customers.
环宇集团(Huyu)的情况与熊猫类似。该公司为国家电网以及其他客户提供变压器和其他电气产品。
Austin Zhao, a director of the Zhejiang-based company, said business is good because of the government drive to upgrade the electricity network, part of a bigger push to promote growth through infrastructure.
这家浙江公司的一位总监Austin Zhao表示，由于政府在推进电网升级，公司业务发展良好。电网升级是政府通过基建促进经济增长的计划的一部分。
But Huyu will not be taking on many more workers.
但环宇不打算招收更多工人。
“We’re expanding our capacity but the impact on labour will be minimal because of more automation,” he said.
“我们正在扩大产能，但由于自动化程度提高了，劳动力总数所受的影响将是微乎其微的，”Austin Zhao说。
