The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted global trade. 

In China, companies involved in foreign trade employ 200 million people. The government has rolled out policies to support them, and one expert says while stabilizing the foreign market, they should also pay attention to China's vast domestic market.

In the first five months of the year, China's exports totaled 6.2 trillion yuan, or 873 billion U.S. dollars, down 4.7 percent from a year ago.

"Due to the sluggish demand from the international market, the number of orders has decreased. Major economies have stopped their production, so segments of the industrial chains are blocked," said Xu Yingming, the Deputy Director of the Institute of International Market Research at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.

"Also, international trade channels are also restricted, because of the curbs on transport and travel," he added.

Xu believes the country should explore new markets, and cultivate new business models, such as cross-border e-commerce and online expos. He believes the country should also support trade-related enterprises to shift export goods to domestic consumption.

But Xu says it's not easy for those companies, as they lack access to the domestic market. They used to focus on fulfilling orders, but now they need to adjust to wholesale or retail and build customer bases. And that's not all.

"Also, they may be affected by intellectual property rights and branding issues, as some of their products' designs, technologies and styles have been patented abroad, so they need to get authorization for using them," said Xu.  

The Chinese government has announced new policies to help those companies. They aim to help the firms connect with the market, provide financial support, and better protect intellectual property rights.

With COVID-19 largely under control in China, domestic consumption has warmed up since March. But some industries, including catering and hotels, are still under a lot of pressure.

Xu believes China's strong consumption power will eventually save the day.

"Among China's 1.4 billion people, 400 million of them are middle class. And the whole country is experiencing upgraded consumption, whether it's in big or small cities or rural areas. These factors serve as an import foundation for the demand for foreign-trade companies while they switch to domestic consumption."

Xu also believes, given the pandemic, the international environment for China's exports is still tough. Shifting export goods to the domestic market should not only be a short-term approach to resolving trade difficulties, but also a long-term strategy to meet the trend of upgraded consumption in China.