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There are arguments based on strong justifications that the US cannot compete globally; however, won't the rising middle class in Brazil, India, Russia and China, increase wages, which will give the US an opportunity to sell to these countries which have a very large consumer base?
While this doesn't negate the fact that it will still be cheaper to manufacture goods in countries where wages are low, and while the profits made from global sales may not be redistributed to provide for facilities and employees in the home country, wouldn't the US by defenition still be competitive on the global market?
A rising middle class abroad should help Americans considering consumers will have the money to by American products.
Additionally, if the American economy falters, who will take our place as consumers to buy the products of countries where wages are rising rapidly; therefore, increasing the cost of labor?
While BRIC's involvement in the development of nation building with it's trading partners will eventually raise the cost of labor to manufacture in those countries, wouldn't it take years for them to have the ability to buy products from nations where wages are rising rapidly?
What exactly would be the benefit of cutting the US out of the picture? Wouldn't it hinder profits and hurt the domestic economy of nations that have rapidly rising wages?
Also, considering a portion of our debt is held by foreign countries, what benefit would it be for them to remove the dollar as the international medium of exchange, especially in regards to oil?
Wouldn't that cause significant increase in inflation since the global demand for the dollar will decrease substantially? This would mean that our IOU's would essentially be worthless, or at least, worth sigificantly less than they were before due to the decrease in buying power.
What will happen then? Will politicians give pieces of land or US companies to places like China or Japan or whomever debt is owed to?
*Non-related but, for those that believe in intergalactic space travel, if aliens are limited by E=MC2 how could they possibly travel hundreds or thousands, or hundreds of thousands of light years through the empty wasteland of space to reach earth?
With 1.3 billion people I'd bet their middle class would be large...
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Furthermore, they are described as having an income of $10k-$60k per year.
That is the urban annual income, not the rural annual income, < $5,000 is more like it and rural china is where most of the population lives and works...
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If people in the US can afford products made here on simliar levels of income, why wouldn't people in China be able to do so?
Hmmmm, then why in most products we buy here do we see Made in China, Made in Mexico, Made in Thailand etc....????????????
Why is Wal Mart so huge and doing so well in the marketplace?
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I understand, there will be a markup due to regulations and shipping costs, but would it be so significant to deter them from purchasing the products?
The only American products that do well overseas are movies, public relations firms, GM crops and weapons.
Look around even American construction companies can't compete against the Chinese for construction projects here in America.....
We need to get ourselves out of this industrial mindset. We are no longer a manufacturing based economy. We are moving into an age of an information/knowledge based economic system, and we as a country need to adjust accordingly.
1. Knowledge enhanced products or services can command price premiums over comparable products with low embedded knowledge or knowledge intensity.
2. Pricing and value depends heavily on context. Thus the same information or knowledge can have vastly different value to different people, or even to the same person at different times.
3. Knowledge when locked into systems or processes has higher inherent value than when it can "walk out of the door" in people's heads.
4. Human capital — competencies — are a key component of value in a knowledge-based company, yet few companies report competency levels in annual reports. In contrast, downsizing is often seen as a positive "cost cutting" measure.
As a simple example, we need to stop trying to open new manufacturing plants in the US and start working to develop easy ways to license our existing technologies and knowledge to foreign companies where they can manufacture the goods. The average American citizen has to start to understand this, and start to learn new skills to personally keep up.
With 1.3 billion people I'd bet their middle class would be large...
That is the urban annual income, not the rural annual income, < $5,000 is more like it and rural china is where most of the population lives and works...
Hmmmm, then why in most products we buy here do we see Made in China, Made in Mexico, Made in Thailand etc....????????????
Why is Wal Mart so huge and doing so well in the marketplace?
The only American products that do well overseas are movies, public relations firms, GM crops and weapons.
Look around even American construction companies can't compete against the Chinese for construction projects here in America.....
I believe the article was refering to the middleclass income, which consists of 300 million people.
And while I don't have the numbers for the international sales of American based multi national corporations, (maybe I'll do that this weekend), I do know that Apple recently made $55 billion dollars last quarter in sales, and over 50% of that was international.
So, there must be some international success for American based countries.
We need to get ourselves out of this industrial mindset. We are no longer a manufacturing based economy. We are moving into an age of an information/knowledge based economic system, and we as a country need to adjust accordingly.
1. Knowledge enhanced products or services can command price premiums over comparable products with low embedded knowledge or knowledge intensity.
2. Pricing and value depends heavily on context. Thus the same information or knowledge can have vastly different value to different people, or even to the same person at different times.
3. Knowledge when locked into systems or processes has higher inherent value than when it can "walk out of the door" in people's heads.
4. Human capital — competencies — are a key component of value in a knowledge-based company, yet few companies report competency levels in annual reports. In contrast, downsizing is often seen as a positive "cost cutting" measure.
As a simple example, we need to stop trying to open new manufacturing plants in the US and start working to develop easy ways to license our existing technologies and knowledge to foreign companies where they can manufacture the goods. The average American citizen has to start to understand this, and start to learn new skills to personally keep up.
Why wouldn't international companies just steal our knowledge? Why would they pay us once they figure out how to do it?
What are we going to do, especially if it's China or Russia?
Also, where does Europe fit in the global economy? Shouldn't they have the same problems that we are facing? Don't they make up a fairly large, significant, consumer base?
And while I don't have the numbers for the international sales of American based multi national corporations, (maybe I'll do that this weekend), I do know that Apple recently made $55 billion dollars last quarter in sales, and over 50% of that was international.
And where does Apple manufacture it's goods? China
Where does Apple keep most of it's money? Overseas
Who owns most of Apples intellectual property rights? Foreign subsidiaries
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So, there must be some international success for American based countries.
And where does Apple manufacture it's goods? China
Where does Apple keep most of it's money? Overseas
Who owns most of Apples intellectual property rights? Foreign subsidiaries
Where?
Well, if that's the case, then every country will have the same problems that America has.
The majority of money will be in the hands of corporate board members and countries will have their home base in a country that serves as a tax haven.
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