Export barriers to the Chinese market: Insights from British Columbia forest products firms.

Canada's forest products firms have endeavored to develop the Chinese market as their alternative export destination. These needs became even urgent since the US economic recession in 2008. Reducing the export barriers that firms encountered will minimize their losses and enhance their export performance in the Chinese market. Through a questionnaire survey, thirty-four managers in British Columbia's forest products firms identified and evaluated the barriers that hindering their exporting to the Chinese market. The identified nine export obstacles include difficulties in finding business opportunities, skillful personnel and foreign representatives differences in verbal, nonverbal language and socio-cultural traits, price competition and excessive transportation cost. The findings in this study also indicate that different parameters of firm size have different relationships with export barriers. In addition, different parameters of firm's export experience also show different relationships with export barriers. These findings will facilitate forest policy makers in British Columbia to formulate Chinese market export strategies, especially to target firms with different firm's size and export experience. --P.ii.