China’s firms are taking flight, worrying its rulers
Policymakers at home and abroad are anxious about offshoring
FOR DECADES, China has put foreign capital to work. Officials pushed Western companies to trade technology for access to its vast market, helping build Chinese rivals that were often better and always cheaper. These upstarts began shipping goods westwards. The resulting “China shock” is often blamed for causing dislocation and despair in America’s heartlands. Now, though, it is China’s turn to worry. Its manufacturers are taking flight.
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This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Footloose factories”
From the January 4th 2025 edition
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