The president of Dongguan Leather and Footwear Association has said that shoemakers in the city are importing larger quantities of leather after finding domestic supplies do not reach their quality requirements. 

Wang Shengpei said the area will concentrate on high end shoe production, after doubling its output in that sector over the past two years, and that one third of low-end manufacturers have been closed.

Shoes exports from Dongguan have dropped slightly in value but volumes are running around the same levels of last year, he said.