China and Weapons of Mass Production: The “China Price” Is the “Cheating Price”

China and Weapons of Mass Production

The “China Price” Is the “Cheating Price”

Peter Navarro

The China Price refers to the fact that Chinese manufacturers can dramatically undercut competitor prices over a mind-boggling range of goods. Given China’s demonstrated ability to conquer one export market after another, the obvious question is this: What economic factors really drive the China Price? If China is winning in the international trading arena on the basis of a cheap, well-disciplined labor force and superior manufacturing methods, that’s one set of facts. It is quite another set of facts entirely if China is cheating, which it is. In fact, much of the China Price advantage is the result of slave-labor conditions coupled with a potent array ...