China June trade surplus swells five-fold

Reuters ^ | Reuters

[jpsb]

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's trade surplus for June swelled five-fold from a year earlier as exports grew much faster than imports, offering more ammunition for foreign critics who argue that Beijing should let the yuan rise in value.

The June surplus grew to $9.68 billion, exceeding forecasts of $8.0 billion and towering above the $1.8 billion surplus recorded for June 2004.

[Protagoras]

They can't get more competitive when they have to meet all the government shackles like OSHA and FICA and all the rest. Not to mention health care and minimum wage etc, etc. There's just too much built in overhead. Did I mention liability and malpractice?

BINGO!

Guess it time to fix those problems.

[SandyB]

Sooner or later all the overpayed American auto workers, office workers, insurance processors, those that work in billing, claims, call centers, accounting, etc will replaced by chinese.

Maybe they should get more competitive?

They need to lower their wages down to the world price of labor, and the rate for chinese peasants is about right. Also, they have to withdraw from the social security system, since that is an extra fixed cost that employers would have to pay if they hired an american instead of a chinese.

I think if american workers adopted these few simple items, lower wages, withdraw from social security, give up vacations, holidays, and medical benefits, they would have a chance to be competitive with chinese laborers.

[cp124]

ping

[Protagoras]

Please post the words of the bill of rights which say that the purpose of the US government is to promote Democracy in other countries. (which, BTW, the founders rejected )

Thank you

[Andrewksu]

I believe that you under estimate, they have more than just cheap labor. The Chinese are taking a swing at capitalism and are doing so aggressively. Their manufacturing companies are searching out new products and are eager to take on challenges and smaller projects. They have also undertaken new manufacturing processes and technologies that, teamed with cheap labor, make China a force to be reckoned with. Also the issue of China not respecting intellectual property, our strongest asset and advantage over China, further upsets the trade imbalance.

Many US companies have stagnated in the areas of technology and entrepreneurial enthusiasm. The furniture industry is a good example. Most furniture purchased in the US is built in China, and many US companies have failed or are having severe problems. With that, they cannot keep pace with advances in the industry, or provide competitive quotes for manufacture. There are things we can do to be more efficient to negate the labor cost differences, but it is a big spread right now.

I believe in the long run, China will hit a wall where capitalism and communism meet and one will fail. Until then how far are we going to allow ourselves to fall behind.

[Protagoras]

Also, they have to withdraw from the social security system,

Saaayyy,,you DO get it!!

since that is an extra fixed cost that employers would have to pay if they hired an american instead of a chinese.

Precisely.

I think if american workers adopted these few simple items, lower wages, withdraw from social security,

You are on the right track.

give up vacations, holidays, and medical benefits, they would have a chance to be competitive with chinese laborers.

Oh, NOW I get it! Americans are ENTITLED to these things. All the rest of the world should just figure that out.

Or maybe instead of all those things, maybe, just maybe, we could get government thugs to stop impeding us from competing. Maybe folks like you should look to real causes instead of creating boogymen to blame.

[jpsb]

It is not explicated stated, however the Declaration of Independence and our Bill of rights make it pretty clear that the usa thinks "All men are endowed by their Creator with ..."

However this line of discussion is way off topic, By the way, just read on other thread how the Chicoms have killed US ship building, guess you think that pretty cool too huh? Keep shopping at wal-mart.

[listenhillary]

Cut corporate taxes to zero, cut personal/payroll/sales taxes, privatize health care, privatize education, privatize retirement funding. Bring government back to it's constitutionally proscribed limits and we will out produce and out compete again in a BIG way.

We are pecked to death by rules and regulations with so many laws we each probably violate 3 before we get to work each day. Throw the laws and lawyers out and start over. Every new law enacted must be INDIVIDUALLY re-authorized every 5 years to remain in effect. If it's a good law, reauthorization will pass easily. This will have the effect of bored nanny state legislators thinking up new ways to screw with constituents.

Starting point? The constitution.

By removing powers from the over-reaching legislators and courts, you take the incentive away from corporations to buy and sell influence to enact legislation to help their own business or harm a competitor.

This will result in more competition and less money in politics. If we de-fang our government, there will be no need to pay bribes or protection money to be left alone.

If people can start businesses and file their taxes on a postcard, there will be tremendous economic growth. There will be tremendous creativity unleashed like we have never seen in our lifetimes.

[HamiltonJay]

Exactly.. without manufacturing might, which is now at the point where it is indeed dubious that we could sustain a critical war mass for a sustained direct conflict with China. You can't build up infrastructure fast enough to recover what is being lost.. in the middle of a conflict.

[HamiltonJay]

If you look at household incomes, adjusted for inflation since 1970, you'll see its marginal increased at best.. and if you take into account that now most homes are 2 income vs 1 income back then you see that earnings is declining per person. when it takes 2 folks to just break even with what 1 person was managing to do 35 years ago... you aren't gaining ground.

[Teacher317]

Just got back from a 6 week Law School study program at Renmin University in Beijing. I absolutely loved being there. However, the image that will forever stick in my mind regarding Chinese construction is the beautiful $100M 15-story brick-faced building that is new main campus buiding. It's 99% completed, and sits just across from the Law School building that we were using.

It was supposed to be open a few months ago, but we were told repeated that it was not ready for the public because it was still undergoing "safety inspections". What does that mean? Well, twice during the 6 weeks I was there, I saw holes in the face of the building, where dozens of bricks had come loose and fallen... from over 120+ ft up, onto the main entrace sidewalk below. I never bothered to check out the other 80% of the external walls, and never got a chance to go inside and see what things looked like. (However, many of the other buildings near campus that are less than 10 years old are showing intense amounts of wear, and often feature power lines within reach of anyone over 5' tall. I would have guessed them to be 30+ years old.)

This is to be the focal building for one of China's top universities... and they are unable to get the brick exterior to be safe enough for students to enter the building! Chinese construction deserves its global reputation as total crap. How they will ensure first-class warfare equipment is beyond me.

[Modernman]

Absolutely, the destruction of our manufacturing capcity makes this nation hugely vulnerable

Our manufacturing output keep going up, not down, in this country.

[Teacher317]

buiLding.... repeatedLY...

*sigh*

One day I'll take a typing course.

[HamiltonJay]

Transportation industry growth for unloading and shipping the cheap overseas goods has not replaced remotely the manufacturing jobs that have been lost. A service industry job only creates 1.6 addional support jobs... where as a manufacturing job creates 3.5 jobs for every direct job.

Its pretty rudimentary CREATING SOMETHING (manufacturing) CREATES MORE WEALTH than simply DOING SOMETHING (service industry) jobs. That's a fundamental reality and truth, and all the free traders attempts to cherry pick don't change that reality.

[expat_panama]

...if american workers adopted these few simple items, lower wages, withdraw from social security, give up vacations, holidays, and medical benefits, they would have a chance to be competitive with chinese laborers...

What is it with all this "overpaid exploiting America" talk-- am I the only person here who's aware that Americans are good people?  American labor costs more because it's worth more.  The rest of the world already knows that US labor is the most productive (check out International Comparisons of Productivity).  Let's get together on the facts.

Over the past half century US real wages have tripled.  That's because US output has increase eight-fold.  In general Americans are harder working, more God-fearing, and happier than peoples of other countries.  This constant American bashing is not only insulting, it's simply not true.

[HamiltonJay]

Its not toys or clothing you have to worry about, its things like STEEL, ARMOR, RUBBER (Synthetics) .... We cannot today remotely ramp up production to support our war machine if a major direct and sustained conflict were to take place fast enough.

We depleted stockpiles of just high tech weapons against an inferior force in the early days of IRAQ and AFGHANISTAN... When a direct conflict could be destroying 100s of planes or tanks a day, we could not currently produce them fast enough to replace the losses simply because we don't have the infrastructure left to do it..

[Modernman]

Nearly every war is decided by who can produce the war machines most quickly.

Not anymore, not really. The era of giant war machines involving entire nations is probably past. The coming war with China will be won, by one side or the other, before replacement ships, tanks and planes could be produced in any meaningful number.

[jpsb]

That is because "they" keep changing the definition of what "manufacturing" is, recall the attempt to get "making burgers" at the local fast food vendor reclassified as "manufacturing".

[N3WBI3]

Thats a great idea, with housing the way it is... oh wait that would collapse the housing market..

BTW are you saying engineers should be making 10$ an hour?

[N3WBI3]

Actually I have no issue with free trade when I comes to South Korea, Japan, Australia, Canada, and most of the EU.. Where I mind is nations with slave labor, no environmental regulations, and no human rights...

We are willing to lay down the lives of marines for democracy in Iraq, but not our dollars to encourage it in china?