Although the footwear manufacturing hub continued to increase exports, the growth was said to be slower than in previous years and many companies attributed this slowdown to the effects of the anti-dumping duties imposed by the EU. Some Wenzhou companies stated that their results had been negatively affected by the tariffs, claiming that exports to European countries had fallen to around 30% of the volume exported in 2005. As a result many companies are now shifting their focus to other export markets.

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