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Most warehouses in Shanghai have been closed, and more than 90% of trucking capacity in the city has been out of service.
[T]he geographical distribution of the latest wave remains extremely widespread, and the outbreak continues across almost every part of China of significant economic importance,”
If you think people are pissed about inflation now, just think how pissed they'd be if they had to pay for the value of all American-made goods. And if you really want to piss people off, get rid of all undocumented labor here in the United States and pay the cost of produce picked only by American citizens.The high cost of dependence on lower cost imports.
The high cost of dependence on lower cost imports.
There is some truth in this, I believe.
For example, we are woefully inadequate in I.C chip foundries, even though we owned the industry in the 60's.
It's not just economics at stake. It's a matter of strategic importance.
That is true. Could we pay more for American made products if we had more American workers earning higher wages? I don't think there is an easy answer. Reliance on foreign products, even dependency to the point of a standstill in our economy, i.e. chip manufacturing, could have dire consequences.If you think people are pissed about inflation now, just think how pissed they'd be if they had to pay for the value of all American-made goods. And if you really want to piss people off, get rid of all undocumented labor here in the United States and pay the cost of produce picked only by American citizens.
Nearly all of our economy is based on cheap foreign or undocumented labor.
That is true. Could we pay more for American made products if we had more American workers earning higher wages?
I don't think there is an easy answer. Reliance on foreign products, even dependency to the point of a standstill in our economy, i.e. chip manufacturing, could have dire consequences.
We should find a middle ground?
Good question.That is true. Could we pay more for American made products if we had more American workers earning higher wages?
Would one potential middle ground be to have "Country A" reliant on the "X" that is produced by "Country B" as "Country B" is reliant on the "Y" that is produced by "Country A"?I don't think there is an easy answer. Reliance on foreign products, even dependency to the point of a standstill in our economy, i.e. chip manufacturing, could have dire consequences.
We should find a middle ground?
National security even.There is some truth in this, I believe.
For example, we are woefully inadequate in I.C chip foundries, even though we owned the industry in the 60's.
It's not just economics at stake. It's a matter of strategic importance.
With modern technology, we can start moving back manufatoring and use robotics. The jobs won't come back as easily, but the products can be made more localWe have become primarily a service economy. Wandering through a typical US ‘big box’ store you will find few US made items offered for sale. Even US (sounding?) brands like DeWalt tools and Johnson levels are now made in China.
National security even.
Indeed, with robotics the amount of manufacturing in the US can be increased significantly.With modern technology, we can start moving back manufatoring and use robotics. The jobs won't come back as easily, but the products can be made more local
Robotics could bring manufacturing jobs back to the US - Utah Business
US manufacturing jobs are on the incline thanks to the efforts made by these Utah companies.www.utahbusiness.com
Oh I like thisWith modern technology, we can start moving back manufatoring and use robotics. The jobs won't come back as easily, but the products can be made more local
Robotics could bring manufacturing jobs back to the US - Utah Business
US manufacturing jobs are on the incline thanks to the efforts made by these Utah companies.www.utahbusiness.com
the dishes are prepared by robotic arms, and the food is delivered to the tables mechanically
Sure, and diversifying certain critical components so they're made domestically could help. Bringing back manufacturing to the level we would be close to self sufficient is a whole other can of worms.That is true. Could we pay more for American made products if we had more American workers earning higher wages? I don't think there is an easy answer. Reliance on foreign products, even dependency to the point of a standstill in our economy, i.e. chip manufacturing, could have dire consequences.
We should find a middle ground?
Yeah, but the downside is the people who are replaced by machines. The more technical jobs get, the more training and education the workforce needs to meet those requirements. Given the high cost of education and training in this country, it isn't an easy thing for people to do without ending up in serious debt. Ideally, the companies making these moves toward automation will train existing employees so they can transition, but there's nothing to guarantee that.Oh I like this
Indeed, with robotics the amount of manufacturing in the US can be increased significantly.
Unfortunately the people who are capable of operating those automated plants are [1] in short supply, and [2] far fewer than needed to run non-automated plants. That means that the wage cost of the automated plants is actually lower than for non-automated plants. That, of course, means that the total spending by the workforce of an automated plant is less than the total spending by the workforce of a non-automated plant. And that, naturally, means less purchasing and, hence, a slower economy.
And then there is the cost of building the automated plants. Does it make economic sense (at the shareholder and management levels) to spend millions of dollars to replace perfectly adequate facilities (and to walk away from those facilities because there would be no market for them) simply "for the good of the country" - especially when "the good of the country" would actually mean a shrinking of consumption capacity?
Let's take the situation to a (theoretical) extreme and assume that the workforce in an automated plant is 10% of the workforce in a non-automated plant of equivalent output. Let's also assume that the workforce at the automated plant earns 50% more than the workforce in a non-automated plant. Theoretically that would mean that prices could drop by 45%.
However, the cost of building the plant has to be calculated into the price and that would mean that the prices would NOT drop by 45% and the difference between what the prices did drop (let's call it 25%) and the wages paid out would mean that there would be around 30% less "wage money" being pumped into the economy and that would mean that consumption would, necessarily, decline by a related amount.
Thanks Biden.New COVID lockdowns in China freshen supply chain pressures
Global consumers could feel the effects in the form of continued delays and higher inflation.www.axios.com
[Had a tough time deciding where to put this thread, but the article is from a legit source, with a current byline, and appears to be data driven with high general relevance. So, into BN it goes!]
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My comment:
"We just can't seem to catch a break!"
And you don't have to pay even minimum wage.Oh I like this
This reminds of a Times article, which laid out interesting facts. Although Apple is now the biggest or next to biggest American corporation as measured by market value, it employs only 43,000 people in the United States, a tenth as many as General Motors employed when it was the largest American firm.That is true. Could we pay more for American made products if we had more American workers earning higher wages? I don't think there is an easy answer. Reliance on foreign products, even dependency to the point of a standstill in our economy, i.e. chip manufacturing, could have dire consequences.
We should find a middle ground?
The amount of decrease in "economic churning" would be proportional to the amount of the consumer base that was involved in the conversion from non-automated to automated production facilities.Nope, unless a significant apportion of the consumer base is impacted by that automation.
True.The market price of a widget does not change (anywhere near that much) based on where or how that widget is produced.
They would have absolutely no incentive whatsoever - as long as their competition could not afford to also lower their prices. That, as you indicated, would greatly increase profits. That, in consequence, would result in a greater concentration of wealth in the hands of the small percentage of the population that already controls the majority of the country's wealth. And THAT means that the portion of the population that does not control the majority of the country's wealth would end up with less disposable (real) income. The lack of disposable (real) income does tend to slow down a consumer economy.Let’s say that company X decides to (heavily invest) and automate production of it’s widgets - why would they have an incentive to (significantly) drop their widget’s price instead of making more profit per widget?
True. However someone who has spent 20 years running a manually fed bolt making machine is going to have just a bit of a problem finding another (comparably paying) job at age 35 and with only Grade 12 education (considering the actual quality of education that High School graduates actually get).Again, that “wage money” is only reduced for those no longer making widgets at the automated facility and only if they do not find other (comparably paying) jobs.
For some reason your post reminded me of the analogy to digging a foxhole.This reminds of a Times article, which laid out interesting facts. Although Apple is now the biggest or next to biggest American corporation as measured by market value, it employs only 43,000 people in the United States, a tenth as many as General Motors employed when it was the largest American firm.
Apple does, however, indirectly employ around 700,000 people in its various suppliers. Unfortunately, almost none of those people are in America.
Why does Apple manufacture abroad, and especially in China? As the article explained, it’s not just about low wages. China also derives big advantages from the fact that so much of the supply chain is already there. A former Apple executive explained: “You need a thousand rubber gaskets? That’s the factory next door. You need a million screws? That factory is a block away.”
If you want American manufacturing, you need to bring the supply chain back too.
The amount of decrease in "economic churning" would be proportional to the amount of the consumer base that was involved in the conversion from non-automated to automated production facilities.
True.
They would have absolutely no incentive whatsoever - as long as their competition could not afford to also lower their prices. That, as you indicated, would greatly increase profits. That, in consequence, would result in a greater concentration of wealth in the hands of the small percentage of the population that already controls the majority of the country's wealth. And THAT means that the portion of the population that does not control the majority of the country's wealth would end up with less disposable (real) income. The lack of disposable (real) income does tend to slow down a consumer economy.
True. However someone who has spent 20 years running a manually fed bolt making machine is going to have just a bit of a problem finding another (comparably paying) job at age 35 and with only Grade 12 education (considering the actual quality of education that High School graduates actually get).
Is the problem insolvable? Not in the least. Is the problem insolvable using the currently acceptable postulates? Most likely.
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