China’s manufacturing increase – An Overview

Manufacturing in China has increased dramatically in the last couples of decades, and is increasing more rapidly all the time. As China continues to develop, its economic and manufacturing power and influence is certain to keep on rising. China’s population is huge, currently standing at over 1.3 billion, which is around 20% of the world’s total. It had previously been very much a small player within manufacturing but with its development and massive population its potential in this area is unquestionable.

China is now becoming an important force in the economic world, and this has had a particularly large affect on manufacturing. For a long time China was very much an outsider compared to western nations but it is now developing all aspects of its society. The country and its people are becoming more westernised and similar in some ways to Europe and countries such as the United States. For many years Chinese people were barred from travelling by their government. This is no longer the case and their people’s exposure to other societies may be having an affect on their rapid development. It has made some people want to start businesses, while others have been encouraged to follow the consumer society of the west.

The beginning of manufacturing in China on a large scale was clothing and footwear. As China was (and to a certain extent still is) relatively poor the cost of labour was (and still is) cheaper than western countries. This meant that many western companies outsourced their manufacturing to the country. In recent time they have moved more into electrical, computing and telecommunications products. Dealing with these more expensive products has bought more money into the Chinese economy. Clothing and footwear is still at the forefront of Chinese manufacturing though.

The ten years between 1995 and 2005 saw a large increase in manufacturing. In 1995 about 3% of the worlds manufacturing took place in China, but by 2005 this figure was around 11%. In percentage terms this is still only half of the country’s population, and the figure is almost certain to continue rising for some time yet. At the moment its increase in manufacturing is around 20% each year, which is a very significant increase. The figures are similar for the percentage of the world’s exports. Between 1995 and 2005 is has risen from approximately 2% to over 10%. China’s manufacturing is expected to overtake the United States and the world’s biggest within the next few years.

Imports have also risen dramatically. In the past Chinese consumerism was fairly small. They are now consuming more each year. The whole culture of China is changing and, like Japan before them, it is becoming much more like the west. It is now the second largest petroleum importer in the world, and the second largest auto market.

The impact China’s continued development will have on the world economy is hard to predict. All that can be said is that its impact will be significant. With it having the largest population on earth it is hard to say how much its manufacturing and development could increase by. Over the next twenty years China’s development is likely to change the face of the manufacturing and business world.

Andrew Marshall ©

Wholesale Manufacturers China