10% (and this was good few years ago at least) of all the stuff that is shipped here from China, goes DIRECTLY to Wal-Mart.
It's probably more now.
They're predatory with the companies, forcing them to reduce their prices so far in order to even get a market share in their store (vis a vis space on their shelves).
Let's say I am a manufacturer of oscillating fans. I want the price for those fans to be $30.00, and in order to pay my current employees that much, I need the price to be around $28-$30. But WAL MART, in order to get a shelf space at their store, wants me to reduce my price to $19.99.
Guess what that means? I have to layoff some employees/cut benefits/have components made in another country to make up for what I'm losing.
This is the predatory nature of wal mart. It's not just that stuff is made in China, it's that they're FORCING companies to send their component manufacturing to "low cost" countries to make sure that they can keep some of their employees, and stay in business.
Also, they've decimated the supply chain by doing this, because now, we don't make the components here, and they must be shipped from "low cost" countries, making us totally dependent on them for things.
Here's a good example: Shoes.
Years ago (even 10+ years ago) the shoe industry wasn't as bad off as they are now. Now, they're not even existent in this country. The "wal mart" strategy?
Let's bring some shoe companies over to China, really big brand name ones like Nike, Reebok, and others, and bring down the price a ton.
Have you seen the price of shoes lately? They've risen dramatically. Why? Because NOW, they've eliminated the competition.
Here's how. Those big companies moved over there. They offered ridiculously low prices initially, and as their competitors were forced to shut down completely, or sell out to China themselves, putting them on a "level playing field" (i.e. no more American market share) they can jack up the prices again, this time, making SHEER PROFIT for the big wigs, and instead of paying all that money in BENEFITS TO THEIR EMPLOYEES, they get to LINE their OWN pockets instead!!!
:cussing:
It's maddening. I saw this coming 11 years ago when "MFN" with China was passed.
What else? Well... our credit card with China has run out. The staggering number? I'll let you see it for yourself.
As not to alarm anyone and say what it is ($2 trillion) the FT has called it something else less alarmist like...
"$2000 billion."
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/89189ae6-539f-11de-be08-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss