Chinese factories grow again, but U.S. sector shrinks

[Gerald]

(Reuters) - Chinese manufacturing output grew last month for the first time in more than a year but a surprise contraction in U.S. factory activity tempered optimism about the health of the world economy on Monday.

Business surveys also showed the euro zone's manufacturing sector shrank for a 16th straight month, though a little less rapidly than in October.

A rise in HSBC's China manufacturing PMI to 50.5 in November, its first time above the 50-point growth threshold in 13 months, suggested the world's second-biggest economy may be heading into 2013 with more momentum after struggling this year.

The expansion in Chinese factory activity should provide a boost for world growth, particularly since recovery in the debt-strapped euro zone still appears a long way off.

Yet the outlook elsewhere in Asia, including India and South Korea, was less encouraging. And in the United States, manufacturing shrank in November, turning in its worst showing in more than three years.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/03/us-global-economy-idUSBRE8B20CK20121203

U.S will boost up!

Note: Mon Dec 3, 2012

[Stealhead]

Strange isn't it? All of those things made in the Chinese factories are largely purchased in the US.Mostly these goods are low cost items or items that are not very costly to make you combine that with the cheaper labor force in China that is why it goes over there so as a result the US losses manufacturing jobs.

At the same time if the goods made in China where not being sold in the US China would be in trouble because no other country has anywhere near as large of a market as the US does.Those low end manufacturing jobs are never going to come back in the US not on the scale needed to employ the number of people
that could work in manufacturing here I don't care what any politician claims.


What needs to be done in the US is the promotion of trades I heard some place that there are something like 5 million jobs in trades that are going unfilled because there are no skilled persons available to perform the work.

Lets take a diesel mechanic this job is in high demand a person even at the entry level if they work for a railroad can earn $21.00 an hour and as a journeyman they can make as much as $27.00 an hour.That is just one example.Now a person would have to have about 3 years of working experience to get on as ajourneyman but they could learn this in a shop changing oil and other basic duties combine that with schooling and you have what you need to get hired as a journeyman with any railroad or you could get on at the entry level with just school experience.
By comparison my sister has been teaching for 10 years and she just in last 3 years started earning $20.00 an hour.

For years kids have been taught that college is the way to go but it seems that there are less and less jobs available for college grads in their fields.Yet there are many trades out there in which a person with less than a a four year degree can work in and earn the same and sometimes more money than many jobs requiring a 4 year degree.

The kids that once went into manufacturing work these kids should instead take their skills and get trained in a trade that is in demand (there are plenty).The reason that kids do not do this is because in most cases trades are no longer taught in high schools so many kids go through school with great potential but never even knowing that they have it.There are some exceptions but they are rare a few schools in the US have programs through the German company Siemens in which they learn a trade they can later get a job with Siemens and work part time and go to a trade school part time.This should done in some way in every school district it does not have to be Siemens in every case.

[Armistead]

I do agree the jobs aren't coming back, even if you lower taxes. Heck, jobs left by the millions with the Bush cuts. We can't compete with low wages, little regulation, cost of building, little benefits, etc. In a global economy American workers will continue to lose jobs. The last big corporate tax holiday that was supposed to create jobs...didn't, they used the money to send even more jobs overseas. Sadly, our small town once a large mill town is dead, last week another business shut down here, 290 jobs lost, moving overseas.

Regarding skilled trades, some do pay well, but constuction all but died when the economy tanked. The market is so crowded with builders that work goes so cheap, hardly worth bidding these days.

[Stealhead]

What you say about construction is true though it is coming back in some regions.But that is only one group of trades.

I have friend that is a pipe layer up in Maryland he has always had good work some times things slow down a bit but in that trade you have as much maintenance and repair of older lines as you do installation of new ones there are terracotta lines all over the US that stuff is old and breaks often my friend gets a job at Annapolis on the Naval Academy grounds at least once a month not to mention all of the city and county contracts he gets.The trick is finding a trade that is in demand and always will be and one that does not suffer as much during downturns the downside of construction is people need to be building things and that always come and goes you have strong periods but weak ones as well.

There was a big upturn in construction in the 80s and 90s now that bubble has burst it happens same thing happened after WWII until the late 60s then things slowed down.When things are good you always have an influx of people getting into that trade when the trade is one that ebbs and flows every 10~20 years you take a risk and when things slow down some places are going to go under.

We can adapt we always have in this country maybe some people give up on the US but I never will.(not saying that you have necessarily but some people seem to have)