Up the value stream

Um artigo no Financial Time (reproduzido pelo New Economist) dá conta que, para obviarem aos problemas causados pelo aumento dos custos da mão-de-obra, as empresas exportadoras chinesas estão a aumentar o valor acrescentado dos seus produtos.

The higher prices reflect in part a deliberate strategy by manufacturers and retailers to shift to higher-value products, which command fatter margins. “I think the world is getting a little bit tired of competing on price,” says William Fung, Li & Fung’s managing director. “Product differentiation is key. No one wants to sell a commodity and compete against Wal-Mart.”

Research by Global Sources, a Hong Kong-based trade-show organiser and publisher, shows that export values are growing faster than volumes for everything from hair dryers to tyres. “Companies are not just making the same thing and charging more. They’re adding value,” says Michael Kleist, who runs Global Sources’ industry research team in Shenzhen. “Almost everyone is trying to get off the bottom level, because once they drop their price they don’t get it back.”