China has some advantages for manufacturing that are probably temporary. Their currency exchange rate and labor wages are both likely to increase in the coming years. Manufacturing employment is already falling there.
We can get some of those manufacturing jobs back in the US with a change in national attitude and policies. Americans and our politicians need to be more welcoming of manufacturing and assembly operations through lower tax and regulatory burdens. It takes approximately forever to get government approval for new plants and equipment in the US, whereas product sales cycles are only 6 - 12 months in many industries. We need to make politicians and bureaucrats do things faster.
We also need to stop bashing big business. Small business is fine – I own a couple myself. But only big business has the capital and resources needed to resurrect our once great manufacturing industries. Small businesses can then prosper as suppliers to the big business operations.
That's the way it works. That's the path to employment growth and reducing the trade deficit. Stop whining about China and big business, and get politicians to remove the obstacles to doing big things in the US.
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