2007-11-24, China's View of Wal-Mart: Big Partner 2

Several hundred employees worked at the peculier center keeping the import pipelines¹ full.
Walmart gives the chinese suppliers the specifications² for Walmart products.And they teach those suppliers how to meet those specifications.They have to do with price. They have to do with quality.They have to do with delivery schedual. So in a sense, Chinese suppliers learn how to export to US market through large retailers⁴ like Walmart.
The chinese suppliers also learned just how tough Walmart can be.
Walmart is very shrewd people ,you know. That they have the orders behind them and they go into almost demand.These are the what I need.
K ,Chan is HK entrepreneur, who used to supply Walmart.
I've even heard when sometimes they called in through three or four manufacturors. and negotiate and say this is what I want.
They bid the price as low as possible. What did they do?
Basically, they bring people into their officies and just put product initiative everybody bid their cost on the product. And it's very high pressure.
Have you ever been in that situation, where you have to bid with 3 or 4 people in a same room.
Yes, I have. One of the things I was involved there ,of lesson,clearly probably,at most ,may be less than 1 dollar.
So they're pounding on a few pennies.
Yes , we are pounding ,in a lot of cases just one penny.
The argument is that this is getting a big deal for the consumers. Do you buy that? Or do you say..
No, it get a big deal for the retailor or importer.
For the Walmart.
Yeah. For Walmart ,for the targets who ever does it.
I heard about Chinese producing cheap low in consumer goods. What was striking to me was how many chinese companys were going high-tech⁵. You may not have heard of TCL. But you've seen their TVs and maybe bought them marketed under brand names like Philips and RCA. And you'll be hearing more from them soon. They have a wide rang of modern electronic products. And they've just merged⁶ with the French electronic giant Thomson together as the largest TV maker⁷ in the world.
99% of our exports are for North America and Europe where we make a large part of our profit. We need to fullfill the demand of our foreign customers.
And only one US customer, it turns out really matters to TCL.
Sending to Walmart accouts for all our sales to the US market.
Walmart keeps a very low immentory and a fast turn around which forces us to speed up our production to catch up with the international market.
It was a familiar reframe I heard it everywhere.Wrapping up production ,supplying Walmart, shipping⁸ to America. And at ShenZhen's main port , I saw a river of exports. 10 years ago, this was all barrow land. Today ,Shenzhen is on the verge⁹ of becoming the 3rd busiest port in the world. And Walmark is one of its biggest constomers.
Walmart has a very close relationship with China.China is the largest exporter to the US economy in virtually all goods categories, Walmart is the largest retailer³ in the US economy in virtually all goods categories.
It sounds that like commercial marriage made have it.
Walmart and China are joint¹⁰ venture and both are determined¹¹ to dominate the US economy as much as they can.

1 pipelines   

管道( pipeline的名词复数 )； 输油管道； 在考虑（或规划、准备） 中； 在酿中

参考例句：

• The oil is carried to the oil refinery by pipelines. 石油通过输油管输送到炼油厂。
• The oil carried in pipelines. 石油用管道输送。

2 specifications   

n.规格；载明；详述；（产品等的）说明书；说明书( specification的名词复数 )；详细的计划书；载明；详述

参考例句：

• Our work must answer the specifications laid down. 我们的工作应符合所定的规范。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This sketch does not conform with the specifications. 图文不符。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 retailer   

n.零售商(人)

参考例句：

• What are the retailer requirements?零售商会有哪些要求呢？
• The retailer has assembled a team in Shanghai to examine the question.这家零售商在上海组建了一支团队研究这个问题。

4 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

5 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

6 merged   

（使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中

参考例句：

• Turf wars are inevitable when two departments are merged. 两个部门合并时总免不了争争权限。
• The small shops were merged into a large market. 那些小商店合并成为一个大商场。

7 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

8 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

9 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

10 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

11 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。