Over the past nine months, footwear exports are estimated at US$3.6 billion, a year-on-year increase of 23.1 percent. Major importers include the EU, the US, Mexico, Brazil and Japan.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade says that footwear production and consumption in the reviewed period has increased its growth because the world is rebounding from the economic crisis.

Furthermore, the Chinese footwear sector seriously lacks workers so importers are turning to Vietnam and Indonesia for their orders.

Like the garment sector, footwear businesses are short of workers so the ministry has urged the sector to take measures to keep workers and recruit and train new ones.

The footwear sector is implementing a series of measures to gain a firm foothold in the domestic market. Domestic consumption currently accounts for nearly 40 percent of production.