China as the Workshop of the World
An Analysis at the National and Industrial Level of China in
the International Division of Labor
Is China becoming the "workshop of the world" in the same way as Britain and
the United States once were; or is China – as some multinational companies believe –
simply a processing segment in global production networks? This book examines China’s
role in the international division of labor: it analyzes the scale and scope of China’s
manufacture; the type and relative sophistication of its exports in the world market; and
its position in the global value chain. It shows that China monopolizes industrial
production by being the processing center of world.
Based on extensive original research, this book examines the structure of
production in global manufacturing industries, applying both qualitative and quantitative
methods. It analyzes each segment of the value chain, exploring in depth several specific
industrial sectors. It concludes that China has become deeply integrated into global
manufacturing industry; that China’s position in the value chain is still quite low,
with relatively low research and development (R&D) and other similar high-value
activities; but that, in some sectors, China is catching up rapidly, especially in newly
emerging sectors.
Yuning Gao
is Post-Doctoral Research Associate at the Winton Center for
Financial History, University of Cambridge, UK.
Table of Contents
1. Background, Theoretical Framework and Literature Review
2. Scale and Scope of the "World Workshop": China’s Place in World
Production
3. Pattern and Sophistication of the "World Workshop": China in the
World Mark
4. The Competitiveness of the "World Workshop": China’s on the
Service Part of Global Value Chain
5. Comparative Study of Three Industries of China in the International
Manufacturing Division
230 pages, Hardcover