Consumers Will Pay More For a ‘Made in the USA’ Label

March 12, 2012 by Leave a comment

CHICAGO, March 12, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — New research published in the Journal of International Marketing shows that consumers are willing to pay a premium for products made in countries with favorable reputations.

“Our findings show that consumers not only prefer and assign a higher value to branded products from a country of origin with a favorable country image but also are willing to spend more money to obtain them,” say study authors Nicole Koschate-Fischer, Katharina Oldenkotte and Adamantios Diamantopoulos, in an article appearing this month in the American Marketing Association’s Journal of International Marketing.

The authors ran four experiments in which participants (college students in Germany) revealed how much they were willing to pay for branded products coming from different countries. One study, for example, compared Evian bottled water from France, a nation shown to have a more favorable reputation, and Evian bottled water from Turkey, a nation shown to have a less favorable reputation. On average, respondents showed they were willing to pay the equivalent of $1.28 for Evian coming from France versus $ 1.04 from Turkey. The study also looked at the U.S. shoe brand Nike. When participants were told the Nike’s they were considering were made in America they were willing to pay more for them than when they were told they were made in South Korea. Further experiments, however, showed that the price differential becomes less substantial the more familiar consumers are with the brand in question, regardless of where the brand originates.

The findings can help marketers in their pricing decisions. For example, if marketers are pricing a product that comes from a country with a favorable reputation, they may consider charging a premium for it. They may also want to highlight the product’s country of origin in advertisements. Conversely, if marketers are promoting a product from a less favorable country, they may benefit from highlighting product attributes rather than its origin. The authors also suggest companies consider the impact on price and consumers’ willingness to purchase if they are thinking of relocating manufacturing to a country with a less favorable image.

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China solar giant faces glare of US trade war

March 12, 2012 by 2 Comments

The low cost of labour, coupled with the massive scale of production at its 14,000-person plant, have enabled China's Suntech to become the global industry leader in solar power in just a decade

In the eastern Chinese city of Wuxi, home to the world’s biggest maker of solar panels, labour is so cheap that workers carry out jobs by hand while machines designed to perform the same tasks sit idle.

The low cost of labour, coupled with the massive scale of production at its 14,000-person plant, have enabled China’sSuntech to become the global industry leader in just a decade.

Chinese producers now dominate the global solar power business. But their success has become a major global trade issue as American companies accuse them of dumping in the US market and receiving unfair subsidies from Beijing.

The US government is due to announce findings on the issue later this month, which could result in duties against Chinese manufacturers.

Suntech denies unfair business practices have helped make it the world’s largest producer, but it makes no secret of its strategy of keeping prices low to boost sales and make solar power available to more people.

“We don’t believe we have any unfair subsidies or anything like that,” said Suntech’s vice president for global marketing Edwin Huang. “We just hope it doesn’t turn into a full-scale trade war. It’s not good for anyone.”

US companies have accused China of improperly subsidising its solar sector as part of a no-holds-barred commercial battle for supremacy over an industry experts estimate will be worth trillions of dollars in the future.

They say Chinese competitors have access to cheap financing from state-owned banks and outright government subsidies aimed at building up the industry, as Beijing makes alternative energy a priority.

At least three US solar companies collapsed last year as global prices slumped, among them Solyndra, which had a $535 million loan guarantee from US President Barack Obama’s administration.

Evergreen Solar, once listed on the Nasdaq exchange, and high-profile Intel spin-off SpectraWatt also shut down.

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Trade deficit hits 3-year record high imbalance

March 10, 2012 by Leave a comment

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. trade deficit surged to the widest imbalance in more than three years in January as imports hit an all-time high, reflecting big demand for foreign-made cars, computers and food products.

U.S. exports to Europe fell, raising concerns that the debt crisis in that region could dampen U.S. economic growth.

The January trade deficit widened to $52.6 billion, the biggest gap since October 2008, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Imports rose 2.1 percent to a record $233.4 billion. Exports were up a smaller 1.4 percent to $180.8 billion. Exports to Europe fell 7.5 percent.

Economists are looking for the deficit this year to widen from last year’s $560 billion imbalance, reflecting in part the economic woes in Europe, which represents about 20 percent of America’s export market. A wider deficit can depress economic growth because it usually means fewer export-related jobs.

A National Association for Business Economics forecasting panel has projected that the deficit for 2012 will narrow by 4.1 percent to $535.4 billion and will edge down further to $525 billion in 2013 as growth in exports keeps pace with import increases.

The economy grew at an annual rate of 3 percent in the final three months of 2011. For all of 2011, the economy expanded by just 1.7 percent, roughly half the rate in 2010. The NABE forecasting panel expects growth to improve to 2.3 percent this year and accelerate to 2.8 percent in 2013.

In January, the politically sensitive deficit with China rose 12.5 percent to $26 billion. Last year, the deficit with China hit a record $295.5 billion, the highest deficit ever recorded with a single country.

At a time of high unemployment in the United States, political pressure is growing to impose economic sanctions on what critics see as China’s unfair trade practices such as a currency regime that keeps the yuan undervalued against the dollar, making Chinese goods cheaper in U.S. markets and American products more expensive in China.

The deficit with the 27-nation European union dropped 11.7 percent to $8.5 billion in January but that occurred because European imports fell 8.7 percent, offsetting a 7.5 percent drop in U.S. exports to Europe. Economists are worried that a severe recession in that region resulting from a prolonged debt crisis will crimp U.S. exports.

The rise in imports in January reflected a 3.3 percent increase in petroleum imports to $39.1 billion and a 10.4 percent increase in imports of autos and auto parts, which hit an all-time high of $25.3 billion. Imports of capital goods such as computers and industrial machinery also hit a record at $44.7 billion. Imports of food products also hit a record high of $9.6 billion with demand for foreign-produced fish, meat, bakery products and wine and beer all rising.

The increase in exports reflected records in several categories with exports of U.S. made cars and auto parts setting a record at $12.7 billion and exports of U.S. made capital goods, a category that includes computers, aircraft and telecommunications equipment, setting a record at $43.2 billion.

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China lambasts U.S. trade bill, won’t adjust yuan

March 7, 2012 by 4 Comments

BEIJING (Reuters) – A U.S. trade bill targeting Chinese imports goes against international rules and Beijing will not adjust the value of its currency to try to bridge a trade deficit that is Washington’s problem to fix, China’s commerce minister said on Wednesday.

President Barack Obama is set to sign the bill into law to allow duties to be imposed on subsidized goods from China and Vietnam, which the White House says will protect American jobs.

“We follow the rules of the WTO, but we have no obligation to follow domestic laws or regulations in any specific country that go beyond international rules,” Commerce Minister Chen Deming told a news conference on the sidelines of an annual meeting of parliament.

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U.S. Congress Approves Tariffs to Combat China Subsidies

March 7, 2012 by 1 Comment

 

The U.S. Congress voted Tuesday to authorize renewed tariffs on billions of dollars worth of goods from China and other countries considered to be state-run economies, a move aimed at countering unfair subsidies.

The measure approved by lawmakers reaffirms the legality of a tariff program in place since 2007 on imports from “non-market economies,” which was struck down by a court ruling in December.

With support across party lines, the House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to give such authority back, following a similar vote a day earlier in the Senate. President Barack Obama plans to sign the bill.

Representative Dave Camp, a Republican who heads the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, said on the House floor that the measure would preserve an “important tool” for the United States.

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Filed under China, Currency Manipulation, Jobs, Tariff

Two-thirds of China’s cities fail on air standards

March 6, 2012 by Leave a comment

BEIJING (AP) — Two-thirds of China’s cities currently fail to meet stricter air quality standards that the government wants to phase in over four years to combat notoriously smoggy skies, a senior Chinese environmental official said Friday.

The State Council, China’s Cabinet, on Wednesday issued new limits on pollutants to go into effect nationwide by 2016. It also said major cities must launch programs this year to regularly monitor additional kinds of pollutants for the first time, including fine particles associated with health problems.

Vice Minister of Environmental Protection Wu Xiaoqing said Friday that the government estimates that two-thirds of Chinese cities currently do not meet the new standards, saying efforts to improve urban air quality will be “very hard work.”

“Our task of air pollution control is huge,” Wu said.

The government revised its air quality standards in response to public pressure over pollution and the lack of thorough information about air quality in China. Demands in Beijing for greater government accountability on air quality were fueled in recent months in part by a Twitter feed set up by the U.S. Embassygiving hourly updates on air quality as measured on the facility’s roof.

Wu said the government plans to set up 1,500 new air monitoring stations around the country.

“We also want to build up public confidence in the data we provide in order to better serve the public,” Wu said.

The new Chinese standards require concentrations of fine particulate matter called PM2.5 to be kept below daily averages of 75 micrograms per cubic meter — more than twice as lenient as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s standard of 35 micrograms.

Some Chinese cities generally have much higher amounts than that, and the U.S. Embassy monitoring showed a 24-hour average in the capital Friday of 188.5, a reading that it called “very unhealthy.”

PM2.5 — particles less than 2.5 micrometers in size, or about 1/30th the width of an average human hair — are believed to be a health risk because they can lodge deeply in the lungs, and have been linked to increased cardiovascular and respiratory diseases as well as lung cancer.

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american MADE CHIC summer bus tour

March 1, 2012 by Leave a comment

Summer Bus Tour

american MADE CHIC

“What we are doing isn’t political but it’s consciousness raising at a time when many people are either feeling pretty down about our nations stature — and dare I say soul”.

This summer five incredibly talented, smart, chic American women, will travel across the country in a decked out Red, White and Blue travel bus creating high impact events and awareness for jobs, manufacturing and products Made in America.

“American Made Chic” will set out to change the views of Americans and shed light on all things American. Each event will be packed with fashion, food and drink while providing a platform for sharing knowledge and information about jobs, manufacturing and American made products throughout the country. We will provide a fresh, hip, modern twist on what it means to support our country while creating loyal fans and followers.

Our tour will kick off at the Kentucky Derby on May 4th, 2012. It is important that this summer tour begin this year, as it is an election year. Our travels will include the Country Music Festival in Nashville Tennessee for the three day action packed event, Daytona NASCAR event and the grand finale in Detroit, Michigan (Motor City). We will visit manufacturing plants, tour some of our sponsor’s facilities and discover all things American.

I have attached the bios of each team member for your review. Collectively we have over 25,000 Facebook fans and the experience and knowledge to create an explosive American campaign. If you would like us to attend your event, please contact Michelle Thelen at ichooseamerican@gmail.com.

“American Made Chic” offers several ways that you can be involved.

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Filed under Automotive, Economy, Education, Government, Green, Industry, Insourcing, Jobs, Made in USA, Power of Consumers, Press Release, USA-C Tagged with , , , , ,

A $100,000 factory job. What’s uncool about that?

February 27, 2012 by 1 Comment

 By Parija Kavilanz | CNNMoney.com

 

Young Americans are shunning factory jobs because they think they are uncool. But they need to do some homework. Some positions are paying close to a six figures

What’s uncool about a $100,000 factory job? These days not much. In fact, factory jobs — once considered back-breaking and low-paying — have become high-tech and high-salaried.

Still young people don’t get it, say factory owners, who can’t find enough skilled workers.

“When I was an apprentice in the late ’70s, kids were dying to get into manufacturing. There were plenty of factory jobs,” said Joe Sedlak, a machinist who owns the Chesapeake Machine Company in Baltimore. “There are jobs for the taking today. But kids don’t want them.”

Stereotypes about factory jobs still persist. And the media isn’t helping, factory owners complain.

“On TV, kids don’t see many positive images of manufacturing,” said Bill Mach, president of Mach Mold, a manufacturer of plastics molds in Benton Harbor, Mich. A show will have a scene with “an old dark building with a bird flying out of it, and something bad happens.”

Scott Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, agreed. “Pop culture has a big impact on young people,” he said, adding that the only recent positive pop culture depiction of manufacturing that he can think of has been in Iron Man.

The industry needs an image boost, and young people need to get educated about high-skilled factory jobs, experts said.

Desperately seeking factory workers

An aspiring machinist — a popular factory job — can start training at 18 and then do a one- or two-year manufacturing apprenticeship. In five years, he or she could be making more than $50,000. In 10 years, that could double to $100,000.

Not a bad salary for a 28-year-old.

“If you’re really good at your work, you could remain employed for a very long time, because there are so few of us,” said Sedlak.

Sedlak’s top worker makes $30 an hour. And annual pay at his company ranges between $70,000 and $80,000 with overtime. In 31 years, only three workers have retired from his factory.

Still, with almost 13 million unemployed Americans, including many high school graduates, he is struggling to fill positions.

A recent Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte report underscores that. Manufacturers currently have 600,000 vacancies nationwide, it said.

“When we pushed manufacturing out of the country, we pushed job opportunities out,” said Sedlak.

The downward spiral that followed was swift. With jobs gone, schools ended vocational classes. Kids lost interest in manufacturing. Many states stopped sponsoring apprentice programs in factories.

Last week, Justin Lavanway, 17, and two of his high school buddies, toured Mach Mold to learn more about manufacturing and its jobs.

His grandfather was a career machinist with Whirlpool. “I saw that it was a pretty stable career for him,” said Lavanway. “That’s why I’m keeping my options open.”

States to manufacturers: We want you!

But his friends, Joseph Johnson, 18, who is thinking about a job in medical services, and Charlie Leaf, 18, who wants pursue a career in psychiatry, are not interested in manufacturing.

“The public school system tells students that we have to go to college to be successful,” said Johnson. “Ever since you’re young, you hear that’s what you have to do to achieve the American dream.”

Johnson and Leaf also don’t think manufacturing offers stable careers.

Mach hears this often from young people, even through manufacturing is a deep-rooted profession through generations of families in Southwest Michigan.

And it’s just not true, he said. “I have 40 people in my plant. Half have been there for 15 to 25 years.”

“There’s no easy answer to how we can change manufacturing’s image problem,” said Paul. Companies themselves have to be up to that challenge, he said.

One idea is to turn to pop culture, said Paul.

“Maybe we need someone cool like Clint Eastwood to say, ‘Go work in factories’ as a follow up to his Super Bowl Chrysler ad.”

View this article on CNNMoney

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What Does the Future Hold for American Manufacturing?

February 27, 2012 by Leave a comment

The state of US manufacturing is likely to become a major campaign issue - Getty Images

The state of US manufacturing is likely to become a major campaign issue - Getty Images

Written by: BBC North America editor, Mark Mardell 

Drew Greenblatt is an enthusiast: proud of his company, Marlin Steel, and proud of the factory floor packed with state-of-the-art equipment.

I watch, fascinated, as a little white robot squeezes out a wire, putting kinks and bends in it as it emerges.

Then it hands it over to a slightly larger yellow robot, which holds it steady for a twist in the end before turning it over for another twist at the other end.

Oddly, I find this cutting-edge equipment rather cute and cartoonish.

The question is whether this endearing duo are merely the remnants of America’s industrial past or the sort of equipment that will make the USA world-beaters once again.

The factory floor space at Marlin Steel is being doubled and there is no doubt the company is doing well, prospering even, during the bad years. Read more of this post

Filed under Aerospace, Automotive, Business, Certifications, China, Construction, Currency Manipulation, Economy, Energy, Government, Green, Housing, Industry, Insourcing, Jobs, Labor, Made in USA, Manufacturing, Media, NAFTA/CAFTA, News Release, Outsourcing, Power of Consumers, Press Release, Product, Product of USA, Retail, Small Business, Tariff, Tax, USDA, WTO Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

FDA Says Brazil’s Orange Juice Is Safe, But Still Illegal

February 23, 2012 by Leave a comment

 

Antonio Scorza/AFP/Getty Images Oranges for sale at a market in Rio de Janeiro.

Antonio Scorza/AFP/Getty Images Oranges for sale at a market in Rio de Janeiro.

NPR      by DAN CHARLES  February 22, 2012

If you happen to notice sometime later this year that you’re suddenly paying a lot more for orange juice, you can blame America’s food safety authorities. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, after several weeks of deliberation, has blocked imports of frozen, concentrated orange juice from Brazil, probably for the next 18 months or so, even though the agency says the juice is perfectly safe.

The FDA’s explanation is that its hands are legally tied. Its tests show that practically all concentrated juice from Brazil currently contains traces of the fungicide carbendazim, first detected in December by Coca-Cola, maker of Minute Maid juices. The amounts are small — so small that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says no consumers should be concerned.

The problem is, carbendazim has not been used on oranges in the U.S. in recent years, and the legal permission to use it on that crop has lapsed. As a result, there’s not a legal “tolerance” for residues of this pesticide in orange products. Read more of this post

Filed under Brazil, Business, Certifications, Chemicals, Children, China, COOL Country of origin labeling, Economy, Education, Energy, Family, Farming, Food, Funding, Government, Green, Healthcare, Illegal Workers, Industry, Insourcing, Internet, Jobs, Labor, Lawsuit, Made in USA, Manufacturing, Media, Mexico, Military, NAFTA/CAFTA, News Release, Other, Outsourcing, Political, Power of Consumers, Press Release, Product, Product of USA, Retail, Science, Small Business, Startup America, Supply Chain, Tainted Products, Tariff, Tariff, Tax, Tax, Uncategorized, Union, USA-C, USDA, WTO Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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