Senior practitioners who often listen to foreign trade are talking about the era when foreign trade was very good: the exaggerated saying is, "you can make money lying down." After recalling, they often continue to sigh, "Now, this foreign trade business is getting harder every year."
In the past, foreign trade business was indeed "easy to do." In the early years, many people made money from the south to the north, and many people made the first pot of gold. At a closer time, the first batch of English-speaking people did foreign trade, selling goods from home to abroad, and made a lot of gold. It now appears that this group of people who made money earlier used the "asymmetric information" of that era. At that time, there were few foreigners who knew China and thought about doing business with foreigners. A courageous person, one step ahead, made money.
Today, international trade is a bit "difficult". At least one reason is that, thanks to the developed Internet, information is freely circulated and highly transparent. Imagine that customers know the production model and purchase channels better than you, and you want to maintain high profits. How can it be so easy?
In recent times, foreign trade companies have complained most often that the appreciation of the renminbi over the years has had a big impact on foreign trade. The export profits of foreign trade enterprises have been further compressed, while at the same time, the cost of domestic labor and raw materials has risen.