The issue with the PLA is that sometimes they don't want to pay a premium for domestic products (either by doctrine or simply by funding), leading some export equivalents to actually be better than what they're willing to procure domestically.
The army/ground forces have been the greatest sufferers of that trend, though it seems like things might be changing what with recent indications that a new BDU is being issued and the new rifle family seemingly with some more ergonomic and flexible features available (with a true rail suggesting they're seriously looking at more widespread use of optics)
I wonder how many of those designs were trialled at the same time, or if a number had gone through design revisions. Nevertheless it isn't impossible that only a few of those proposals found themselves adapted to an export proposal.
