“According to the research findings of a Japanese nonprofit trade institute, the average monthly wages for a worker in Guangzhou is 1,850 Yuan ($295), while it is 752 Yuan in Vietnam. With such a huge gap, China may find it difficult to compete with other Southeast Asian nations in low-end products,” Zhou said. The 2013 Global Manufacturing Competitiveness Index, however, paints a totally different picture. Most of the 550 chief executive officers and senior leaders of global manufacturing companies, who participated in the survey, admitted that China remains the top destination for manufacturing, and will retain its top ranking for the next five years. Germany and the US were ranked second and third after China in manufacturing competitiveness. But both these nations could be replaced by India and Brazil over the next five years, the survey said. Meanwhile, members of the American Chamber of Commerce in South China expect their investment budgets to total more than $16.5 billion over the next three years, an increase of 40 percent on the previous three years. These companies in the region expressed strong confidence in the market and in China’s economic reforms, according to a survey published on Feb 26 in Guangzhou. Ricky Tung, co-leader of the manufacturing industry group of Deloitte China, said the ratings suggest that China is now more of a developed economy competitor rather than an emerging economy player. “In addition to supportive policies, China still has relatively lower labor costs and is above average in the attractiveness of its corporate tax rates. With its focused efforts to localize supply chains and create innovation hubs, China is also seen by CEOs as the only emerging economy offering the same supplier network advantages as developed economies,” Tung said.
Posted on: Fri, 07 Jun 2013 09:25:53 +0000