They pretty have to have cheaper labor inputs in order to keep up with the competition.
Loss of jobs as a consequence of trade is part of the "creative destruction" that capitalism entails. There are losers, sure, but there are winners as well - mostly, consumers in the form of lower prices (at least when it comes to outsourcing for cheaper labor), but often jobs are created as a result of increases in capital due to gains from trade. Service jobs are preferable to blue collar jobs in an economy, anyways - who the hell WANTS to work in a manufacturing plant, besides the people that have already worked there for 30 years. The only real losers are the real couple hundred people getting laid off. The thing about capitalism is, it is usually what is natural and unseen that is most beneficial.
Its unfortunate that there are losers, but there are even more losers when there is protectionism.
what the hell do we even export anymore besides bombs, tractors, and Harleys?
Capital goods, from a cato article
:
So let us look more carefully at the kinds of products that lie behind the rise in capital goods exports. First, picking at random from government statistics that detail capital goods, one finds gas turbines, conveyor belts, poultry vision control devices, sorting machines, construction machinery, crushers, grinders, elevators, escalators, stacking carts, robots, brushing machines, jig boring machines, riveting machines, scales, generators, looms, embroidery machines, envelope printing presses, juice extractors, peanut roasting machines, hat making machines, oil pumps, gas compressors, industrial ovens, microcomputers, tape storage units, automatic teller machines, refrigerators, water filters, transformers, electric switches, condensers, traffic lights, telephone switches, television tubes, photovoltaic devices, powered brooms, aircraft, helicopters, rocket motors, barges, towboats, pontoons, space vehicles, radar systems, gyroscopes, laboratory incubators, thermostats, buoyancy instruments, surgical instruments, dental equipment, X-ray plates, and clocks. In sum, they are goods that build nations, increase infrastructure, and lay the foundations for increased productivity and wealth.
Int
These account for about 35% of all exports. Only 1/3 of world trade is in consumer goods, thus much of it is "unseen" by the average consumer. Interestingly, despite the hype from media about a single plant being moved, if you look at actual statistics, manufactured good as a share of exports has remained fairly stable, while capital goods production has increased.
