'Made in World' - WTO Initiative
LAUNCHING a book, “Trade Patterns and Global Value Chains in East Asia ” on 6 June 2011 at the WTO, DG, Pascal Lamy said, “an iPod assembled in China by Apple and most of the export value recorded in Chinese trade is attributable to Japan and other Asian countries.”
He added,
When products include many parts made in many other countries, the effect of an isolated exchange rate appreciation or depreciation to the selling price in export markets will be reduced to the domestic content of these exports, to its “value added content”.
Industrial production in Asia is driven by demand from the USA, and Asian producers have organized themselves to satisfy this demand, specializing on their comparative advantages. It shows a story of mutually beneficial interdependence. Global manufacturing brought a new dimension to the relationship between trade, investment, industrial production and development.
Besides China, which is today dubbed the “World Manufacturer”, we have a series of industrial success stories in Malaysia, Indonesia or Thailand. And this is not limited to manufacturing. Trade in commercial services has been spreading, as global manufacturing demands state-of-the-art logistical, communication and business services to thrive. In the process, Hong Kong and Singapore have become giant trade hubs, while India and the Philippines have developed successful activities of business-services exports.
Contrary to what many people believe, the Asian success story began because a booming US demand for mass volumes and large varieties met suppliers who were able to satisfy this demand. Autarky and isolationism were not options, and it was by opening their economies to trade and foreign investment that “developing Asia” became “emerging Asia”.