New Delhi last week suddenly banned Chinese toy imports for six months, after the Consumer Welfare Association filed a public interest lawsuit. The body cited health concerns posed by Chinese toys, which are suspected of having a high content of lead and other potentially dangerous chemicals.
India's health and consumer affairs ministries are now working on a set of mandatory health standards for both local and imported toys. But while the safety issue is cited as the main reason for the ban, the move will undoubtedly boost India's own toy industry, which has watched China grab 60 per cent of the domestic toy market.
“The case of toys is a case of multiple interests at work,” said Subir Gokarn, chief Asia-Pacific economist for Standard & Poor's. “The domestic industry is completely non-competitive with respect to [the] Chinese, and they have been finding themselves hammered.”