"There has been a massive economic shift from Europe and the US to Asia."..

[dkf]

Anyone who doesn't recognize it is deluded - Richard Quest, just now on CNN

[ixion]

1. Massive is the appropriate word there

as is deluded.

[RandySF]

2. This has been known for a long time.

But not even Asia is invulnerable, and China will suffer when most when it all goes *pop*.

[jpgray]

3. If labor were as free and mobile as capital

Very few would care to reside or work in developing Asia. As labor is neither free nor mobile as capital, capital can't move there fast enough.

[Jim Warren]

4. The dead end of unlimited growth

How many additional planet Earths will be required to add 1.3 billion wanton consumers?

[Amonester]

5. As easy as literally GIVING everybody there (in India, China) a frigging

CREDIT CARD with a limited margin...

Can anybody tell us what will happen when they'll all MAX OUT on these MILLION credit cards?

Bear in mind the fact that their 'salaries' aren't 'growing up' there either...

[gkhouston]

7. That's going to be the interesting end game.

Not enough consumer demand here because there's so much unemployment/underemployment/job insecurity, not enough consumer demand there because they never paid their workers enough in the first place. Who will be left to buy "Made in China"? :shrug:

[dkf]

9. Massive wage inflation in China...not enough workers.

In a new report Williams Inference analyst John Trudigan gives us details on the Chinese labor situation:

Labor shortages have been prominent all over China especially in major coastal manufacturing cities. There is a 555,000 shortfall in major cities in the region that include Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Dongguan. In the Guangdong Province officials estimate a 1 million shortfall.

In the city of Tianjin, minimum salaries are scheduled to rise 16% to index for inflation and labor shortages. Tianjin already raised wages by 12% in April last year.

Shenzhen increased minimum wages 20% to 1,320 yuan ($210) in April this year and now has the highest minimum wage in China. The city continues to have labor shortages.

Shanghai raised minimum wages by 14%. Guangzhou increased the minimum wage by 18.2%, and the coal-rich province of Shanxi raised minimum wages by 15.5%, a year after an 18% increase.

In late April this year, Shanghai officials agreed to cancel a fuel surcharge and lower other fees to appease striking truck drivers.

http://www.businessinsider.com/china-labor-market-2011-07

[Fool Count]

12. But of course, the Chinese will.

That was the plan behind the Chinese modernization all along. Did you think they intended to remain low-wage slaves to the Western consumer forever?

[girl gone mad]

10. ***POP***

I have to admit to laughing out loud at China's ridiculous comments over the downgrade.

Their stimulus was more than twice as large as ours, the state of their economy is much more precarious, they peg their currency to the dollar and exploit our reserve status. They are in no position to be lecturing us.

[gkhouston]

11. They're doing it because they're shit-scared.

If we go under, they are totally sunk.

[davidwparker]

13. +1

[gkhouston]

6. A shift or a bubble? Is "do business in Asia" the wave of the future,

the latest dot-com bubble, or both?

[Amonester]

8. No doubt the 'contemporary' capitalist VAMPIRES are out...

of their frigging minds, like on a short cocaine 'rush' to make a killing for a relatively SHORT while... just to profit ENORMOUSLY for a rather limited period, and then what will happen when THE RUSH is over???

Easy to predict: boom (to the 'rest' of 'poorer' taxpayers).

Who said 'doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is...?" :crazy: