MEXICO CITY - In the birthplace of Tequila, Mariachi and Mexican wide-brimmed hats, Guadalajara, the host city of the 16th Pan American Games, Chinese commodities have been selling like hotcakes.

Ana Espinosa, a volunteer working in an official souvenir shop, was busy selling mascot dolls. "We have seen a great sales performance, which tripled compared with the volume of the first days of the Games," Espinosa said.

A large number of consumers and athletes visit the shops in the stadiums to buy high-quality but cheap souvenirs including mascot dolls, hats, T-shirts, sweaters and cups. But maybe they have not paid attention to the labels sewed or printed on small corners of the products reading "Made in China."

"The products are beautiful and inexpensive. I do not care about where those things come from. Made in Mexico or China, there is no difference," said Raul Palacio, a consumer who bought several sweaters in a souvenir shop.

Although China is far away from Mexico, people in Guadalajara can see its influence on the Pan American Games, a sports event for American athletes. However, this influence is not being felt on the playing fields, but in souvenir shops.

According to informal statistics, 62 percent of the official souvenirs at the Games are produced in Chinese factories, including the mascot dolls, which were designed in Mexico and made in China.

"China also competes in Guadalajara," the Cuba-based Latin American News Agency said. "Generally, nobody can compete with the host country in manufacturing souvenirs; however, China has occupied the market in Guadalajara, which comes as no surprise," the agency said.

Prejudice cannot bring benefits

The popularity of Chinese souvenirs from the Pan American Games reflects the booming economic and trade exchanges between China and Latin American countries.

As China's traditional export destinations, Europe and the United States, were severely affected by the 2008 global financial crisis, Latin America has become an increasingly important market for commodities made in China.

With bilateral trade reaching $183 billion at the end of 2010, China has become one of Latin America's most important trade partners.

Politicians and researchers of some countries worried the flow of Chinese commodities might destroy their own industries, and therefore called for protectionist measures. For example, the Brazilian government lifted the tariff on Chinese toys in early 2011.

However, the demand for Chinese commodities during the Pan American Games suggests that prejudice cannot stop the popularity of products labeled "Made in China." In Latin American countries, "Made in China" products are valued by consumers because of their good quality and low price.

Mexican consumers are satisfied with Chinese commodities, said Jiao Meijun, president of The Alliance for Peaceful Unification of China, an organization in Mexico.

"The Chinese commodities' quality was not very good in the first years since we joined the WTO, but we have improved a lot in recent years... 'good quality products at good value' has become the general evaluation of 'Made in China' by Mexican consumers," Jiao told Xinhua.

Low cost is another advantage of Chinese commodities. As for producing souvenirs for the Pan American Games, the prices offered by Chinese factories were about 30 percent lower than those quoted by Mexican companies, insiders said.