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Albert commented on overdue bills from overseas faced by mainland

[Hong Kong, 20 May 2008]

Our Managing Director cum President of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA), Mr. Albert Au, commented on the increase of overdue payments from overseas markets faced by mainland companies in an interview with South China Morning Post on May 12.

"The knock-on effect of the subprime mortgage problem is serious. The problem has led to stock market slumps and economic slowdowns. This has hurt retail consumption and hence some US firms are unable to pay to their mainland suppliers." Albert said.

It is conceived that Chinese enterprises have accumulated US$100 billion in overdue bills from offshore buyers, especially from the United States since the subprime mortgage crisis last year.

"Some of these US companies may delay payment or some would negotiate with their mainland suppliers to pay a lower sum of money. The impact is going to continue as the US property market and subprime problems have not been completely resolved." Albert explained. Some Chinese manufacturers claimed they would consider abandoning the US market if payment defaults continue.