Experts spoke about the problem of "gray imports" of goods for construction and repair

Experts discussed the development of cross-border trade at the forum "Resources for Growth. Retail and Integration", which was held in Moscow.

According to Evgeny Movchan, General Director of STD Petrovich, there is a high proportion of localized production in the segment of goods for construction and repair, however, about 4.5% of products, including power tools, have to be imported.

Movchan stressed that imports are a high—risk area, which is associated with an additional burden on the working capital of the business and financial risks. According to his estimates, it is impossible to quickly bring in and fill in the deficit positions of imported goods, taking into account the "supply leverage". "Petrovich adheres to a balanced approach — it uses imports where there is no alternative, paying special attention to quality control of products imported into Russia," the CEO added.

Meanwhile, he continued, the DIY (do it yourself) market continues to face the problem of "gray imports", especially in the segment of cable and wire products and power tools. At the same time, a large proportion of counterfeit products are sold through marketplaces that are not responsible for the quality of the product. According to Movchan, there are cases when manufacturers are forced to involve the Customs Service to arrest counterfeit products.

"This problem requires an integrated approach throughout the supply chain, similar to how it works for trading organizations: customs, the Federal Tax Service, copyright holders, trading companies, marketplaces. Everyone should take an active part in solving this problem," the expert believes.

In particular, work should be carried out to tighten customs control, certification and eliminate cargo schemes, Movchan added, stressing that all participants in the e-commerce market should be jointly and severally responsible for the quality of goods displayed on the shelves of their online store or digital platform.

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