And Civic is Japanese and BMW is German. [/B]
Just an example about demand for cheaper items, mate. Korea or Japs, not differences, if you can afford it you would buy a better car (think retail market, let's don't augre this.)
Blast, great companies take times to build, same for the logistic side of a country (again, materials, and transport), labour cost is just one of the factor. Other countries will take a little more time to catch up, I think you would agree.
HK companies are moving around China for lower labour cost and materials (farbic and paper around the Shanghi region and North East), some of them move out of china, such as the Garment Industry (traiff). Ex-workmate used to work for one of the largest OEM manufacture for GE indoor wireless phone (and my ex-employer was selling them packaging, LOL), the firm built a production line in Mexico (closer, faster response) and they couldn't run it, maybe it's a cultural thing on the management side, maybe is the labour (too many Taco?), it just didn't work out.
Taiwan, if you think there are still lots of manufacturing in there or their wages is at the same price as china, then god bless you. Taiwan's wages is at least 5 times that of china. Most major Taiwanese companies have their plants in China. HK and Taiwan lost their manufacturing to China in the late 1980s.
Blast, you are correct that China's price WAS good.. LOL, I was in manufacturing myself, our paper products were properly one of the most expensive in South China. Back to the point, some industries could be displaced overnight, some could not such as electronic assembly. Skill level and price of the work forces couldn't be build overnight.
Anyway, it's not easy to buy elsewhere right at this minute, China knows it, the US knows it, other countries know it and they will play catch up. China will move to someother things, just think about how Japan and Korean done with their economy.
Blast, if it is racial thing, then we are not talking about economics rite? I am just trying to be fair in my comments, and I hope you do so too. To my mind, the only way for China manufacturing to stay afloat is to move on to stuff with more techology contents. Same that Japanese, Korean, Taiwan, Hong Kong had done in the past.