China does not see Vietnam as manufacturing competition

Despite the rise in manufacturers moving their operations from China to Vietnam, the nations are not rivals in the industry.

China has significantly developed from its reputation in the 1990s of a low-cost economy – it now prides itself on its quality control, technology, and rising labour costs within the manufacturing market.

With its recent developments, China has also seen a wave of new investments

With several textile manufacturers moving their production to cheaper economies, such as Vietnam, many electronics companies have followed.

Samsung, LG, and Foxconn have followed the trend in Asia and relocated to Vietnam, amongst others.

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This trend does not seem to be hurting China – the country saw a 6.7% growth rate last year, only just short of Vietnam’s 6.8% rise.

However, according to Bloomberg, the country’s workforce is growing smaller with approximately 25% of the population expected to be above 60 years old by 2030.

With the rise in technology in the industry, robotics and other high-tech devises could be replacing people.

China’s cabinet has proposed that the nation’s birth limit policy that has been in place for four decades be lifted in order to manage the problem.

“Scrapping birth limits will have little effect on the tendency of China’s declining births,” stated Chen Jian, National Family Planning Commission’s Former Division Chief, and Vice President of the China Society of Economic Reform, Bloomberg reported.