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.
在中國最大的貿易展會上，參展制造商對國內和國際經濟前景仍持謹慎態度，并表示不大可能大舉增加人手，盡管有些指標顯示這一關鍵行業已經出現了反彈。
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.
根據周一發布的政府數據，制造及建筑等行業的產出增長率從2016年第四季度的6.1%升至今年第一季度的6.4%，幫助中國經濟實現了略高于預期的增速。
Last month’s purchasing managers’ index suggested March was the first month since 2012 in which Chinese factories had not shed jobs.
3月份的制造業采購經理人指數(PMI)顯示，工廠用工量自2012年以來首次停止減少。
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.
但在每半年一次的廣交會(Canton Fair)上，參展的工廠經理們表示，他們仍對全球經濟的不均衡特征以及國內產能過剩感到擔心，盡管智能手機、與政府相關的基礎設施等行業出現了更強勁的增長。本屆廣交會估計吸引了來自世界各地的2萬家制造商和20萬家采購商。
“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.”
“目前電動車市場已經飽和，生產商還是太多，所以產能過剩是一個問題，”中國最大的電動車制造商之一愛瑪(Aima)的銷售經理Frank Wang說，“產品定價和市場份額方面都有壓力�！彪妱榆囋谥袊某鞘欣餆o處不在。
He said Aima, which produces 4m scooters a year, is cutting back on capital expenditure as it tries to mitigate flat sales growth.
他說，每年生產400萬臺電動車的愛瑪正在削減資本支出，試圖緩解銷售增長乏力的影響。
“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.
“我們目前沒有裁員，但工資增長沒有以前那么快了，無錫的許多工廠也面臨著相同處境，”他說。
Nanfu, China’s biggest producer of alkaline batteries, is also in consolidation mode.
中國最大的堿性電池生產商南孚(Nanfu)也進入了整合模式。
“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.”
“長期而言，我們注重產品開發和市場營銷，”南孚國際業務總監Russel Kong說，“我認為，我們不會大幅擴大產能�！蹦湘谥半`屬美國消費品集團寶潔(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預期今年銷售將溫和增長約5%，與去年相當。由于中國經濟快速增長已成過去時，總部設在福建省的南孚正在努力拓展全球業務。
“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.”
“國際市場是個大蛋糕，我們想從中切一小塊，”他說，“要與金霸王(Duracell)、勁量(Energizer)等競爭，我們在質量方面就得與它們旗鼓相當�！�
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.
雖然沒有多少工廠計劃大量增加人手，但一些制造商，比如制造先進電子產品或承建政府基礎設施項目的公司，銷售增長更為強勁，產能也有所提升。
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.
智能電視和智能手機生產商熊貓(Panda)表示，隨著中國及其主要出口市場東南亞、印度等地的消費者升級換代、購買屏幕更大更好的產品，其業務正在蓬勃發展。
“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.
這家總部在南京的公司的一位管理者說：“今年我們會把產量提高20%，以滿足增長的需求�！�
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.
但由于中國制造業工資在過去十年迅速上升，該公司不愿意大量增加員工數量，更傾向于通過更多使用工業機器人來擴大產量。
It is a similar story for Huyu, which makes transformers and other electrical products for the national grid and other customers.
環宇集團(Huyu)的情況與熊貓類似。該公司為國家電網以及其他客戶提供變壓器和其他電氣產品。
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.
這家浙江公司的一位總監Austin Zhao表示，由于政府在推進電網升級，公司業務發展良好。電網升級是政府通過基建促進經濟增長的計劃的一部分。
But Huyu will not be taking on many more workers.
但環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.
“我們正在擴大產能，但由于自動化程度提高了，勞動力總數所受的影響將是微乎其微的，”Austin Zhao說。
