However, it's also worth noting that some stuff produced in China is rubbish. A few years ago I spent a while browsing in a fishing tackle shop while SWMBO was doing something. Prices of rods were comparable to UK prices. It's difficult to tell a good rod from a bad one just by looking at it, but on only moderately close inspection these (new) rods had rust showing on a lot of the rings. I presume they had never been out of the shop, and the rust resulted from the generally humid atmosphere. Conclusion: the rods were total junk. Reels also looked posh and had prices comparable to UK prices.