I just returned from China (Shangai) where I participated in the Centenary Celebration of Tongji University. An exclusive ceremony, that took place in the different Schools and I participated in the Celebration of the School of Economics and Management. Impressive what they have been able to do and what they are still doing. But "what is in it for us"?
I had some interesting discussions in the side lines (that is how I think you call it). Most growth figures have double digits, including foreign investment (1-0). And of course, the "local" Chinese market is immense. But where do foreign investors make their money? Profits cannot easily be tranfered to the HQ (2-0). The best (if not only) effective way is therefor to reinvest in the country (3-0). The good news for the foreign investor is that he can produce in China very cheap and sell for the same Western market price (3-1). One could question the ethics and/or even corporate social responsibility of it, but let us not be pessimistic. We can always deal with the ethics later, can't we? Due to the growing export of China, the salaries in China rise (4-1) and so does the general quality of life. A growing internal market gets an increased purchasing power and an upwards spiral is started (5-1). But once the production cost of China increases up to the level of other countries (cheap European ones ?) what remains for the foreign investor. A 5 to 1 loss in the World Soccer Championship's final might cost the trainer his head.
Do we ask ourselves ever questions ?
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