Insights into the New Manufacturing Locations

Selected business news articles on global production

India has attempted to give an impetus to the manufacturing sector on multiple occasions in the last decade. In 2014 Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Make in India campaign in a bid to transform India into a global manufacturing hub. After the pandemic pushed India into its worst economic contraction since liberalisation in 1991, Modi, yet again, pitched India to become the world’s factory in an effort to capitalise on the United States-China trade war. These efforts have yielded little result with the share of manufacturing in GDP remaining stagnant at about 17%.

Scroll.in | 13 April 2021

Fashion has found itself caught in the political crosshairs between western and Chinese governments, forced to choose between the demands of human rights groups, western consumers and their own employees on the one hand, and the impulse to please China and its consumers in the world’s second-largest economy on the other.

FT.com | 9 April 2021

Decades of investment from wealthy economies into lower-cost locations have entrenched geographical shifts in manufacturing. Production of semiconductors — the essential components of our digital infrastructure, vehicles and devices — has steadily declined in the west, with East Asia emerging as the main manufacturing hub. The US’s share of global semiconductor manufacturing capacity fell from 37 per cent in 1990 to just 12 per cent last year, while Europe saw a 35 percentage point decline in the period, to 9 per cent. China’s mainland expanded its share from almost nothing to 15 per cent, a figure that is expected to rise to 24 per cent in the next decade.

FT.com | 24 March 2021

Brazilian jet maker Embraer, the world's top manufacturer of small passenger jets called regional jets, aims to expand its share in China. But China has its own homegrown aircraft maker, Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (COMAC), and is keen to see the country's three major state-owned airlines use COMAC jets.

Nikkei Asia | 19 March 2021

Although having become a large manufacturer, China lacks the control of core technologies making up the top end of the global value chain. According to Miao Wei, former Minister of Industry and Information Technology, China remains heavily dependent on imports of basic components and technologies (over 50 percent come from abroad), integrated circuits (80 percent imported), large-scale and high-quality imports of castings and forgings (90 percent imported), and imports of high-end hydraulic parts and seals (100 percent dependent on imports).

China Briefing | 19 March 2021

Geely, China's largest private-sector automaker, has taken the first step toward becoming the Foxconn of electric vehicles. Geely and Foxconn, the Taiwanese Apple assembler, are establishing a 50-50 joint venture that will manufacture whole electric vehicles for clients as well as parts. Just like Foxconn did with iPhones, Geely will pursue an economy of scale through contract manufacturing. Foxconn brings its expertise in procuring components and ability to produce quality digital products. Geely will provide the auto making know-how.

Nikkei Asia | 10 March 2021

Marketed as "the people's commuting tool", the Wuling Hong Guang Mini EV has been a big hit for state-owned SAIC Motor, China's top automaker. SAIC holds a majority stake in SAIC-GM-Wuling, the joint venture that produces and sells the car and is known locally as Wuling, and General Motors is a major shareholder as well. The boxy compact can travel 120 km on a full charge and has a top speed of 100 kph.

Nikkei Asia | 13 February 2021

Indian auto companies witnessed a sharp recovery in earnings in the last quarter of 2020, as the festival season boosted sales despite an economic slowdown and rising cases of COVID-19. The top three auto manufacturers — Maruti Suzuki India, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra — all posted profits for the first time since the pandemic hit in early 2020. It was also the best financial performance by the automakers in seven quarters in terms of both revenue and net profit.

Nikkei Asia | 8 February 2021

The Chinese government has announced plans to expand the domestic market for electronic components to USD 327 billion by 2023, in its latest step to bolster the nation's tech sector amid a growing rivalry with the U.S. The announcement covers components, materials and manufacturing equipment used in such areas as smartphones, drones, 5G wireless, connected factories, electric vehicles, robotics, high-speed rail and aerospace. China aims to increase the market for these components by 20% between 2019 and 2023 under an action plan that involves the development of 15 globally competitive electronic components makers with 10 billion yuan or more in annual sales.

Nikkei Asia | 30 January 2021

Vietnam is moving to build a bigger digital economy, driven in part by semiconductor manufacturing, during the next five years and beyond as the Communist Party maps out a course that will take the country's economy to 2045. The digital economy’s contribution to gross domestic product is targeted to about 20% by 2025 and 30% by 2030. Making a shift to high-quality and value-added products is to play a major role in achieving the targets. Building a cluster of domestic chip industry is a potential move for Vietnam to climb up the value chain.

Nikkei Asia | 29 January 2021

Vingroup has unveiled a lineup of electric vehicles to gain a foothold in the American and European car markets. Vingroup subsidiary VinFast will produce three sport utility vehicle models that use artificial intelligence to run autopilot features such as steering, parking assistance and 3D mapping. Vingroup said it will start taking orders for the SUVs in November, with plans to deliver them to U.S., Canadian and European drivers in June 2022.

Nikkei Asia | 26 January 2021

Despite ongoing supply-chain shifts into Southeast Asia, the Asean economies that have been key beneficiaries will still be hard-pressed to compete with mainland China. The Asean Quad – Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam – has built a dominant presence in niche segments of the electronics industry, such as office equipment in the Philippines, computers and radio equipment in Thailand, and telecom equipment in Vietnam. However, while these countries have a lot to offer, China retains a competitive edge and has achieved economies of scale across multiple electronics goods segments.

The Business Times | 13 January 2021