Fascinating. I didn't know this. Any comments, theories, pointers?
Udhay
http://www.salon.com/tech/htww/2008/04/29/german_trade/index.html
Winning the global trade game
The World Trade Organization [1] reported last week that China had
overtaken the United States as the second biggest exporter in the world.
One could react to this news by complaing about China's competitive
advantages: low wages, the artificially low exchange rate for the yuan,
and weak environmental protection, for starters. Or one could wonder:
Who is number one?
For the fifth straight year, the world champion export nation is
Germany. A country boasting high wages, a robustly valued euro, and
strong environmental laws. In 2007, Germany exported $1.327 trillion
dollars worth of goods [2]; China, $1.218; and the U.S, $1.163.
How does Germany do it? That's a big question, probably too big for a
little blog post. The main point to be made here is that thriving in the
global economy does not inevitably require a race to the bottom. The
German perch at the top proves otherwise.
-- Andrew Leonard
Permalink [11:56 EDT, April 29, 2008]
[1] http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/pres08_e/pr520_e.htm
[2] http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/pres08_e/pr520_e.htm#appendix_table3
--
((Udhay Shankar N)) ((udhay @ pobox.com)) ((www.digeratus.com))
