Risingwages--togetherwithcurrencyfluctuationsandhighfuelcosts--areeatingawaytheonce-formidable"Chinaprice"advantage,promptingthousandsoffactoryownerstofleethePearlRiverDelta.MuchhasbeenwrittenaboutthemorethandoublingofwagesattheShenzhenfactoryofFoxconn,theworld'slargestelectronicscontractmanufacturer,whichproducesAppleiPhonesandiPadsandemploys920,000peopleinChinaalone."Onecantalkaboutaworldpre-andpost-Foxconn,"saysVictorFung,chairmanofLi&Fung,theworld'sbiggestsourcingcompanyandasupplierofWal-Mart."Foxconnisasimportantasthat." Foxconn'swageincreasesareonlythemostdramatic.Ouranalysissuggeststhat,sinceFebruary,minimumwageshaveclimbedmorethan20percentin20Chineseregionsandupto30percentinsome,includingSichuan.AtaGuangdongProvincefactorysupplyingHonda,wageshaverisenanastonishing47percent.Allthisisbadnewsforcompaniesoperatingintheworld'smanufacturinghub,andchiefexecutivesshouldassumethatdouble-digitannualrises--ifnotonthescalewitnessedthisyear--areheretostay. Lookedatanotherway,however,wageinflationprovidescompanieswithaonce-in-a-generationopportunitytorethinkradicallythewaytheyapproachglobalproduction--andtheyshoulddososoonerratherthanlater. Whytheurgency?Afterall,wagehikesinChinaarenothingnew.Since1990,theyhaverisenbyanaverageof13percentayearinU.S.dollartermsand19percentannuallyinthepastfiveyears. Therearetwobigreasonsthesituationisdifferentnow.Thefirsthastodowithproductivity. Overthepast20years,productivityincreaseshavebroadlymatchedwageincrease,negatingtheirimpact.Thepayrisescamefromaverylowbase,sowhileaveragewagesgrew19percentayearfrom2005to2010,thisamountedtoonly￥260amonthperemployee,asumthatcouldbeoffsetbymoreefficientproductionorswitchingtocheapersourcesofpartsandmaterials. Iflaborcostscontinue,however,toincreaseat19percentayearforanotherfiveyears,monthlywageswouldgrew￥623permonth,accordingtoBCGestimates.Suchanincreasewouldripplethroughtheeconomyintheformofhigherpricesforcomponents,businessservices,cargo-handlingandofficestaff. Thesecondreasonrelatestosocietalchange.Untilnow,ifhasbeeneasytolureaseeminglyunlimitednumberofyoung,low-wageworkerstotherichercoastalregionsandhousethemcheaplyindormitoriesuntiltheysavedenoughtoreturnhometotheirfamiliesintheinteriorprovinces.Inthefuture,though,youngworkerswillbehardertorecruit.Thisispartlybecausetherewillbefewerofthem:Largelybecauseofthecountry'sone-childpolicy,thenumberofChineseaged15to29willstartdecliningin2011.Moreover,withlivingstandardsrisingacrossChina,feweroftoday'sruralyouthwillwanttogotocoastalregionstotoilfor60hoursaweekonanassemblylineandliveinacrampeddormitory. SowhatcanCEOsdointhisfast-changingenvironment?Aninstinctivereactionistosearchforcheaperlaborelsewhere.Butthisisshort-sightedandwouldprovide--atbest--ashort-termfix.AnotheroptionistostayinChinaandtrytosqueezeoutgreaterproductivitygains. Accordingtoparagraph1and2,wecansummarizethat().
A.China will always boast a very impressive price advantage around the globe B.Foxconn's rising wage is just a one-sided case C.Souring wages has improved a widespread impact on foreign companies D.Foxconn is a manufacturer of great significance to China正确答案B
