Thailand new hub for auto industry

[wilcopops]

OMR -

At present Australia and Thailand buy about the same number of units - Oz is slightly less.

However as I pointed out earlier, Thailand with a population over 3 times that of Australia is still in the equipment phase....there is room, if car ownership parallels Australia's, for the Thai market to be triple that in Oz.

the Thai industry is MUCH bigger than Australia's - about 7 times the number of units produced.

toyota have bee in Thailand since the 1960s - so they aren't likely to be surprised by the current political situation here.

If you look at plans for the future - you need to look further than Toyota.

The top selling pickup in the world was (maybe still is) the Nissan. They are starting a co-production facility with Mitsubishi in Laem Chabang for this - why? It's on the harbour and ease of shipping.

Furthermore the industry in Thailand is developing into a predominantly export manufacturer...this is something Oz patently failed to do despite 60 years of car production.

don't forget Holden Ford and Toyota are not the first to pull to of Oz, they are the LAST, many manufacturers have tried and failed in Oz in the last 50 years.

Despite the demise of the home industry, Australia will still need cars etc., and they need to be built somewhere...including the larger vehicles that are unique to Oz. I suspect that manufacturers may look at China, Vietnam, Cambodia etc but come on! they are with the exception of China politically more unstable than Thailand!. Thailand has the skills a government ready to do deals - my guess is they are licking their lips at the prospect of a whole new wave of business supplying the Australian market.

Yea and Bathurst will consist of a couple of vios's yapping around the track. No more Holden and Ford rivalry just a couple of little gutless vios's.

Bathurst hasn't always been a Ford, Holden thing, a small change in regs and you'll find cars lapping a lot quicker that the old Holdens and Fords...... may even be more interesting, rather than a footie match on wheels.

[Tomtomtom69]

OMR -

At present Australia and Thailand buy about the same number of units - Oz is slightly less.

However as I pointed out earlier, Thailand with a population over 3 times that of Australia is still in the equipment phase....there is room, if car ownership parallels Australia's, for the Thai market to be triple that in Oz.

the Thai industry is MUCH bigger than Australia's - about 7 times the number of units produced.

toyota have bee in Thailand since the 1960s - so they aren't likely to be surprised by the current political situation here.

If you look at plans for the future - you need to look further than Toyota.

The top selling pickup in the world was (maybe still is) the Nissan. They are starting a co-production facility with Mitsubishi in Laem Chabang for this - why? It's on the harbour and ease of shipping.

Furthermore the industry in Thailand is developing into a predominantly export manufacturer...this is something Oz patently failed to do despite 60 years of car production.

don't forget Holden Ford and Toyota are not the first to pull to of Oz, they are the LAST, many manufacturers have tried and failed in Oz in the last 50 years.

Despite the demise of the home industry, Australia will still need cars etc., and they need to be built somewhere...including the larger vehicles that are unique to Oz. I suspect that manufacturers may look at China, Vietnam, Cambodia etc but come on! they are with the exception of China politically more unstable than Thailand!. Thailand has the skills a government ready to do deals - my guess is they are licking their lips at the prospect of a whole new wave of business supplying the Australian market.

Yes, Mitsubishi exited in 2008 and I think Nissan in 1992?

I think the Thai industry will continue to focus about 50/50 on the local and export industry. I wouldn't say it's becoming predominantly export oriented except or unless, given the void that is about the occur in the Australian industry and only a moderate, but steady growth in local demand. This is assuming protection by the Thai government continues in the same way as now (i.e. prohibitive duties and tariffs on imports, including imported parts for locally assembled vehicles), and that exports go up more quickly than local demand increases. Combined with a larger output due to greater efficiency and more manufacturing plants, it is conceivable that in 5 years from now the number of vehicles produced could be up to 3.5 or 4 million units a year, of which perhaps 1.5-1.8 million would be sold locally and the rest exported. These projections are just rough estimates I've made based on existing statistics and the extra capacity that will come from new investment.

As you say, Australia will continue to need new cars and there's every indication that sales will continue to go up, for now being almost on par with Thailand. In order for Thailand's sales to reach 3 times those of Australia's, GDP per capita would need to go up significantly and local car prices would need to come down a notch. At the moment, I don't see any of these things happening quickly, especially in light of the current political instability and decreased economic growth.

Vietnam is definitely more politically stable than Thailand, but that's got little to do with the (potential) success of the industry there. Although I'm hardly an authority on the automotive industry there, I can see that automotive manufacturing in Vietnam, which currently uses imported parts as the industry there largely consists of assembling CKD vehicles and very small local demand, very high costs (the 3rd highest car prices in the world, due to massive taxes applied by the Vietnamese government) and higher utilities costs than Thailand, poorer infrastructure etc. that perhaps the industry will become unviable in time too, unless changes are made. Vietnamese only purchase about 100,000 new vehicles a year and in a country with about 90 million people there are just 2 million cars (though about 37 million scooters and motorcycles!) Of these, about 40,000 were manufactured there in 2012. This number is far too small to be commercially viable in the long run - the creation of an export market would help. However, Vietnam's relatively poor infrastructure and current lack of local parts suppliers doesn't make it a very attractive country to develop exports at this time. Vietnam's great many schemes to keep cars as expensive as possible and thus prevent as many locals as possible from purchasing them don't help matters either. It's a country that seems to want to attract investment in an industry that has helped many countries to create jobs and provide economic growth, but at the same time doesn't want cars on it's roads. Vietnam is the most anti-car country I've ever visited - even today many frugal locals, although kind of wishing they had the funds to purchase a car continue to look down on any car owner as being privileged and pampered. This attitude needs to change but can only change if the government there changes it's own attitudes. Also, with car prices so high, many locals that can afford a car would much rather spend a bit more on something decent, like a fully imported Mercedes, Porsche or Land Rover rather than an overpriced Vios or Camry that consists of imported parts and is "produced domestically". There are simply no incentives to purchase cars in Vietnam, where car prices are typically 1.5 times or more for the same models, compared to those of Thailand.

As for Cambodia, it's domestic market is rather small, though growing rapidly from a small base. Despite a new Ford Everest facility going up in Sihanoukville that assemblies Everests using imported parts I again don't see much spectre for growth, given the lack of supporting industries, government incentives, local market etc. that would all be needed to develop it's industry. And while it doesn't have the same kinds of prohibitive taxes as Vietnam applies, I can't see it having any shot at complementing Thailand when it comes to exports.

Realistically, Australia can depend on the big players in the region for it's imports: Thailand, Malaysia (mainly Protons), Indonesia (mainly Toyota Innovas), Japan, China and South Korea with some supply coming out of Europe and perhaps some limited supply from South Africa and North America (mainly American models).

[wilcopops]

"Yes, Mitsubishi exited in 2008 and I think Nissan in 1992?" - don't forget Leyland, Chrysler and all the others Rootes, VW, and Renault and AMI.

Thailand already has will have FTAs with Japan Australia and others including the EU and the ASEAN countries.

​Tariffs are OK in small developing economies but the increasing lack of Tariffs at the Thai borders will only serve to improve their exports.

​As the standard of living improves then the domestic market will expand too. this of course will come with all the concomitant problems of traffic, pollution and strain on an infrastructure that can't really cope now.

I would dispute Vietnam's suitability - partly due to the politics - government interference and corruption this is exemplified by the ridiculous LHD laws recently introduced that serve to show they really haven't got a policy to match Thailand when it comes to enticing a major manufacturer. Small industries that can pack up and leave maybe, but a multinational.....not yet.

​ASEAN market alone will want a lot more cars - especially Malaysia and Indonesia who will find their own industries under pressure from Thailand.

Retail price is actually quite a small factor as it can be changed rapidly - as it seldom directly related to costs....more taxes and taffies which will change quite radically over the next few years.

The "price" as opposed to cost of producing a car in Thailand is not bad - the pickups are cheaper than in most countries, albeit in a very technically paired-down form, but when it comes to cost of production, i'd suggest that Thailand is massively competitive.

World markets etc can affect cars - price of oil, raw materials etc but given the future trade agreements that Thai has signed or will sign, i'd say the future for export looks good.

then there's China.........

Edited April 1, 2014 by wilcopops

[chooka]

Refineries are also closing up shop in Australia and moving their operations to S/E Asia. Petrol will then be imported into Australia. B.P the largest refinery in Australia has announced it will close up shop next year 2015 and move to Thailand.

[airconsult]

Refineries are also closing up shop in Australia and moving their operations to S/E Asia. Petrol will then be imported into Australia. B.P the largest refinery in Australia has announced it will close up shop next year 2015 and move to Thailand.

That could be taxes - but also rationalisation.

Anyway - the Aus-Thailand FTA is an interesting one in terms of results. Car manufacture seems to move here, but on the other hand now Aust dairy products (butter, cheese, etc) are much cheaper than local CP varieties.

That's a big win for me personally!

[wilcopops]

Refineries are also closing up shop in Australia and moving their operations to S/E Asia. Petrol will then be imported into Australia. B.P the largest refinery in Australia has announced it will close up shop next year 2015 and move to Thailand.

Interesting - because I was told a few years ago that Exxon couldn't wait to get out of Thailand due to problems from PTT's ambitions to get a state monopoly.

[Tomtomtom69]

How does this balance the warning from some Japanese companies they'll be gone within a year if the politics don't settle down ?

They produce in the Eastern Seaboard and ship out of Laem Chabang. What does politics have to do with this?

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

Only that Toyota has said that if the unrest in Thailand doesn't settle down within 6 months they will shelf a massive development project and if the situation still exists in a year they will likely move elsewhere in Asi

isn't the unrest caused by politics ?

Toyota will look at either Cambodia or Viet Nam, as they are still close to their parts manufacturers in Thailand. Their preference is far and away to stay in Thailand, and it will take a lot to get them to move.

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

Doubtful - neither country has decent infrastructure or any incentives for car makers to go over there. Malaysia, China and Indonesia, where major production facilities, incentives and infrastructure are located would make more sense. Vietnam is a basketcase as far as car manufacturing is concerned and although potential exists, unless the government there changes it's attitude quickly I think foreign car makers should leave. 40,000 units a year for the total industry is laughably small and unsustainable. And as already mentioned all the parts used are imported anyway as there is no Vietnamese parts industry as far as I'm aware.

[Tomtomtom69]

"Yes, Mitsubishi exited in 2008 and I think Nissan in 1992?" - don't forget Leyland, Chrysler and all the others Rootes, VW, and Renault and AMI.

Thailand already has will have FTAs with Japan Australia and others including the EU and the ASEAN countries.

​Tariffs are OK in small developing economies but the increasing lack of Tariffs at the Thai borders will only serve to improve their exports.

​As the standard of living improves then the domestic market will expand too. this of course will come with all the concomitant problems of traffic, pollution and strain on an infrastructure that can't really cope now.

I would dispute Vietnam's suitability - partly due to the politics - government interference and corruption this is exemplified by the ridiculous LHD laws recently introduced that serve to show they really haven't got a policy to match Thailand when it comes to enticing a major manufacturer. Small industries that can pack up and leave maybe, but a multinational.....not yet.

​ASEAN market alone will want a lot more cars - especially Malaysia and Indonesia who will find their own industries under pressure from Thailand.

Retail price is actually quite a small factor as it can be changed rapidly - as it seldom directly related to costs....more taxes and taffies which will change quite radically over the next few years.

The "price" as opposed to cost of producing a car in Thailand is not bad - the pickups are cheaper than in most countries, albeit in a very technically paired-down form, but when it comes to cost of production, i'd suggest that Thailand is massively competitive.

World markets etc can affect cars - price of oil, raw materials etc but given the future trade agreements that Thai has signed or will sign, i'd say the future for export looks good.

then there's China.........

Of course there are a multitude of reasons why car manufacturing in Australia became unsustainable, but I do think that tariffs would have helped keep the industry there, or at least the development of a large scale export industry, combined with a change in the production line to more economical cars. None of these things happened, and people there continually blame only the high dollar and high wages as well as relatively small market size, which is only part of the story. I don't think that Australia should copy or should have copied America's example. The reason why America can continue to have some sort of local production is largely due to it's large market size, which Australia doesn't have. Therefore the Aus government would have needed to use different mechanisms to keep the industry in Australia, but clearly the dismantling of the industry was engineered over a long period of time, perhaps 20 or so years in large part due to government policy. Leyland, Chrysler etc. manufactured in Aus many years ago and shut up shop as early as the 1970's. They were never very big there and in fact even after they left you barely see any imports of such vehicles with the exception of VW and the occasional Renault. Naturally some manufacturers have had more potential than others to stay in the market and the reasons for the exit of the smaller players back then is hardly the same as the current situation.

As I mentioned, I agree that Vietnam is completely unsuitable for vehicle manufacturing. And it's all due to poor government policies. While potential exists due to improving infrastructure, a large population, growing middle class etc. the government makes owning a car something that only very rich people can afford. Case in point, an Indian manufactured Hyundai I-10, which is one of the smallest cars on the market costs a whopping US$22,000 equivalent in Vietnam. It's not much more than US$10,000 in Australia, Europe or India for the same car. A Toyota Camry costs as much as US$50,000 in Vietnam, despite many being "assembled" in Vietnam using imported parts. Such high prices are no way to develop a local market and due to poor infrastructure, a lack of a local parts industry, high utility costs and government bureaucracy, Vietnam is not poised to become a major exporter either. I think one need only look at the example of the Philippines, where Toyota? I believe it was opened a new plant just 2-3 years ago I think it was, closing it down within months of opening! Their total vehicle production in 2012 was only 55,000 units, compared to just 40,000 in Vietnam, which is not even 1/5 of the production of Australia's dwindling industry, which at least has it's own parts industry (which of course will go along with the end of manufacturing there, but I digress). Neither country (the Philippines or Vietnam) seems to be suitable for vehicle production and with large economies of scale coming out of Thailand mainly, but also Indonesia and Malaysia (in that order) and the advent of an ASEAN FTA there is little reason for small, unsustainable car manufacturing industries to remain in Vietnam or the Philippines. In fact, it could well be that AEC 2015 will bring about the decline of the Vietnamese and Philippine industries, as it should. Countries should produce what they're most efficient at and when it comes to vehicle manufacturing, neither Vietnam nor the Philippines is efficient, just like Australia.

As far as the LHD rule in Vietnam is concerned, I haven't heard about that creating a barrier towards potentially manufacturing RHD vehicles in Vietnam, provided they were intended for export. As mentioned, in Vietnam's case it doesn't really matter because there has not been any talk of creating a more sustainable industry there anyway. The LHD rule in Vietnam is thus limited to preventing RHD vehicles from countries such as Thailand from entering for temporary purposes, preventing simplified logistics and car based tourism, however, it's not just RHD but Vietnam now only allows foreign registered LHD vehicles in if you go on a tour with a Vietnamese lead vehicle, according to this article:http://www.ttrweekly.com/site/2013/11/new-rules-for-self-drive-holidays/ The exception, not mentioned by the article is for Lao vehicles that according to a bilateral agreement can continue to enter Vietnam with few restrictions.

Vietnam has a very strange attitude towards cars as I have mentioned before, but even more so towards RHD vehicles. This seems to be ingrained in the conscience of not only the government who came up with these ridiculous restrictions but even the people. A Vietnamese friend of mine remarked at "how strange" it was that virtually every vehicle in Myanmar is RHD yet they drive on the right and how it's dangerous and all this rubbish. A photo he posted on Facebook immediately garnered multiple comments by his Vietnamese friends back home. Even though we had driven a LHD Lao car in Thailand on two occasions prior to that trip, he still made that comment as if he was seeing it for the first time, which I thought was strange. The reality is that the RHD rule is just an excuse since the real reason is Vietnam doesn't want to be overwhelmed by large numbers of Thais, who coming from cities like Ubon or Udon, which are not that far away from Vietnam if traveling via central Laos alone have car populations as high as the much large cities of Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh. The Vietnamese are somehow afraid of what impact that could cause for local communities though I think such fears are well and truly misplaced.

Anyway, anyone who talks about Vietnam becoming competitive when it comes to car manufacturing doesn't know what they're talking about. It's Thailand that's only going to become more dominant. And in addition, Malaysia and Indonesia provide backup and I'm just referring to ASEAN here.

Edited April 2, 2014 by Tomtomtom69

[Tomtomtom69]

Refineries are also closing up shop in Australia and moving their operations to S/E Asia. Petrol will then be imported into Australia. B.P the largest refinery in Australia has announced it will close up shop next year 2015 and move to Thailand.

Another nail in the coffin. Industry in Australia is declining to the point that it will soon just become another, albeit larger Pacific island nation based on tourism, mining and services. I really fear for the future of Australia and feel that many degree programs currently being offered at universities should no longer be offered in the near future with no careers in many industries to speak of. An undergraduate student in Australia is much better off studying for a simpler business degree with the potential to make a lot of money than for an engineering degree, although careers in civil engineering should continue to offer some reasonable choices since you can't offshore road and bridge construction (well, there are offshore opportunities too, but Australia still needs to develop and upgrade it's local infrastructure).

[wilcopops]

"Yes, Mitsubishi exited in 2008 and I think Nissan in 1992?" - don't forget Leyland, Chrysler and all the others Rootes, VW, and Renault and AMI.

Thailand already has will have FTAs with Japan Australia and others including the EU and the ASEAN countries.

​Tariffs are OK in small developing economies but the increasing lack of Tariffs at the Thai borders will only serve to improve their exports.

​As the standard of living improves then the domestic market will expand too. this of course will come with all the concomitant problems of traffic, pollution and strain on an infrastructure that can't really cope now.

I would dispute Vietnam's suitability - partly due to the politics - government interference and corruption this is exemplified by the ridiculous LHD laws recently introduced that serve to show they really haven't got a policy to match Thailand when it comes to enticing a major manufacturer. Small industries that can pack up and leave maybe, but a multinational.....not yet.

​ASEAN market alone will want a lot more cars - especially Malaysia and Indonesia who will find their own industries under pressure from Thailand.

Retail price is actually quite a small factor as it can be changed rapidly - as it seldom directly related to costs....more taxes and taffies which will change quite radically over the next few years.

The "price" as opposed to cost of producing a car in Thailand is not bad - the pickups are cheaper than in most countries, albeit in a very technically paired-down form, but when it comes to cost of production, i'd suggest that Thailand is massively competitive.

World markets etc can affect cars - price of oil, raw materials etc but given the future trade agreements that Thai has signed or will sign, i'd say the future for export looks good.

then there's China.........

Of course there are a multitude of reasons why car manufacturing in Australia became unsustainable, but I do think that tariffs would have helped keep the industry there, or at least the development of a large scale export industry, combined with a change in the production line to more economical cars. None of these things happened, and people there continually blame only the high dollar and high wages as well as relatively small market size, which is only part of the story. I don't think that Australia should copy or should have copied America's example. The reason why America can continue to have some sort of local production is largely due to it's large market size, which Australia doesn't have. Therefore the Aus government would have needed to use different mechanisms to keep the industry in Australia, but clearly the dismantling of the industry was engineered over a long period of time, perhaps 20 or so years in large part due to government policy. Leyland, Chrysler etc. manufactured in Aus many years ago and shut up shop as early as the 1970's. They were never very big there and in fact even after they left you barely see any imports of such vehicles with the exception of VW and the occasional Renault. Naturally some manufacturers have had more potential than others to stay in the market and the reasons for the exit of the smaller players back then is hardly the same as the current situation.

As I mentioned, I agree that Vietnam is completely unsuitable for vehicle manufacturing. And it's all due to poor government policies. While potential exists due to improving infrastructure, a large population, growing middle class etc. the government makes owning a car something that only very rich people can afford. Case in point, an Indian manufactured Hyundai I-10, which is one of the smallest cars on the market costs a whopping US$22,000 equivalent in Vietnam. It's not much more than US$10,000 in Australia, Europe or India for the same car. A Toyota Camry costs as much as US$50,000 in Vietnam, despite many being "assembled" in Vietnam using imported parts. Such high prices are no way to develop a local market and due to poor infrastructure, a lack of a local parts industry, high utility costs and government bureaucracy, Vietnam is not poised to become a major exporter either. I think one need only look at the example of the Philippines, where Toyota? I believe it was opened a new plant just 2-3 years ago I think it was, closing it down within months of opening! Their total vehicle production in 2012 was only 55,000 units, compared to just 40,000 in Vietnam, which is not even 1/5 of the production of Australia's dwindling industry, which at least has it's own parts industry (which of course will go along with the end of manufacturing there, but I digress). Neither country (the Philippines or Vietnam) seems to be suitable for vehicle production and with large economies of scale coming out of Thailand mainly, but also Indonesia and Malaysia (in that order) and the advent of an ASEAN FTA there is little reason for small, unsustainable car manufacturing industries to remain in Vietnam or the Philippines. In fact, it could well be that AEC 2015 will bring about the decline of the Vietnamese and Philippine industries, as it should. Countries should produce what they're most efficient at and when it comes to vehicle manufacturing, neither Vietnam nor the Philippines is efficient, just like Australia.

As far as the LHD rule in Vietnam is concerned, I haven't heard about that creating a barrier towards potentially manufacturing RHD vehicles in Vietnam, provided they were intended for export. As mentioned, in Vietnam's case it doesn't really matter because there has not been any talk of creating a more sustainable industry there anyway. The LHD rule in Vietnam is thus limited to preventing RHD vehicles from countries such as Thailand from entering for temporary purposes, preventing simplified logistics and car based tourism, however, it's not just RHD but Vietnam now only allows foreign registered LHD vehicles in if you go on a tour with a Vietnamese lead vehicle, according to this article:http://www.ttrweekly.com/site/2013/11/new-rules-for-self-drive-holidays/ The exception, not mentioned by the article is for Lao vehicles that according to a bilateral agreement can continue to enter Vietnam with few restrictions.

Vietnam has a very strange attitude towards cars as I have mentioned before, but even more so towards RHD vehicles. This seems to be ingrained in the conscience of not only the government who came up with these ridiculous restrictions but even the people. A Vietnamese friend of mine remarked at "how strange" it was that virtually every vehicle in Myanmar is RHD yet they drive on the right and how it's dangerous and all this rubbish. A photo he posted on Facebook immediately garnered multiple comments by his Vietnamese friends back home. Even though we had driven a LHD Lao car in Thailand on two occasions prior to that trip, he still made that comment as if he was seeing it for the first time, which I thought was strange. The reality is that the RHD rule is just an excuse since the real reason is Vietnam doesn't want to be overwhelmed by large numbers of Thais, who coming from cities like Ubon or Udon, which are not that far away from Vietnam if traveling via central Laos alone have car populations as high as the much large cities of Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh. The Vietnamese are somehow afraid of what impact that could cause for local communities though I think such fears are well and truly misplaced.

Anyway, anyone who talks about Vietnam becoming competitive when it comes to car manufacturing doesn't know what they're talking about. It's Thailand that's only going to become more dominant. And in addition, Malaysia and Indonesia provide backup and I'm just referring to ASEAN here.

"As far as the LHD rule in Vietnam is concerned, I haven't heard about that creating a barrier towards potentially manufacturing RHD vehicles in Vietnam, provided they were intended for export.' - I was using that as an example of VN basket-case legislation rather than a direct impact on any motor industry.

I would agree with most of what you say about the demise of the Oz motor industry except that I don't think tariffs made any significant difference to what was inevitable. They simply were not even making cars suitable for their home market let alone export. No matter how much protection you could put in place you couldn't force people to buy gas guzzlers , pickups etc made their when the alternatives had better reliability, finish and lower running costs.

Australia has an obsession with national "Icons", and this kind of thinking did not help the motor industry. They have been subsidised in so many ways by successive governments that they really have strayed so ar from reality is looks impossible to find a way back.

As for previous companies, who left; they need to be seen in context of the Aussie population at that time and of course the relative size of the motor industry worldwide.

Have you read "lucky Country"? - many people use the expression without reading the book. I think you make an important point about the Aussie economy in general - it is seen by the outside world and many on the inside asa commodities based economy, which is a dangerous viewpoint. If you look at Australia state by state, you can see that those who are digging holes and selling them off are doing well, but the states with less holes are actually suffering from the same economic malaises that the rest of the world has had... and the motor industry is just a part of this.

As China changes its needs and finds new sources it is inevitable that the commodities side will dwindle and leave Oz exposed as anywhere else. They are also likely to have to deal with problems in agricultural commodities as climate change sets in.

As I was post grad student in Oz, I can say that the standard of academia in that system seems highly variable and their is a huge bias of certain "training" and a very anti-intellectual slant....and this nearly half a decade after the Monty Python "Bruces" sketch.

BTW - I'm not writing the Oz industry off - the Unions have already pointed out that the country has the skills and labour to set up a good export industry, and could eve follow a Thai or Uk style motor industry, but they need to produce marketable stuff. i think it needs to die to raise again - look forward to Phoenix Industries, Australia in the next decade.

Edited April 2, 2014 by wilcopops

[Pui]

Now you can see why Detroit is a Ghost Town. Greedy, Western Manufacturers are all coming to Thailand and other developing Countries, in order to take advantage of slave wages and poor worker safety standards, in order to make more profits.

You really have absolutely no idea about the automobile manufacturing industry in Thailand, do you ? The safety standards within these factories are on a par with those in the West and the wages, especially for those with a marketable skill are exceptionally good. Even the run of the mill production line operator has a fair salary, very good bonus and benefits that exceed anything they could get by working at the majority of local companies.

The statement is generally true though. We used to build cars in the UK but we can't any more becuase of the property prices. 70% of the UK land owned by less than 1%. As long as they're getting their rent they don't care if all industry just stops in the UK. and manufacturing moves to Asia. The UK needs land reform or at least land taxes.

In the bigger picture this statement is true. Its why our politicians want to push for EU membership so the 1% can profit from free market. While the country goes bust.

Greedy, Western Manufacturers are all coming to Thailand and other developing Countries, in order to take advantage of slave wages and poor worker safety standards, in order to make more profits.

"We used to build cars in the UK but we can't anymore"...

It's not April 1st until tomorrow!

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/News/Search-Results/Industry-News/CAR-tech-Britains-1bn-auto-industry-revolution/

Jaguar/LandRover is doing very well thanks, as are many many others.

Didn't you ever watch Top Gear - where all British auto manufacturers drove to the Mall of Buckingham Palace.

You'd be very surprised at how actually successful British manufacturing still is. 3rd largest manufacturer in Europe!

Manufacturing has moved to Asia.

UK Manufacturing is in decline, it has been for years. The cost of living, rents, taxes etc make it imposible.

http://www.bbc.com/news/28209578

Jaguar/LandRover are owned by an Indian company. Yes they still make the cars in the UK but its curious example to provide to support the case for UK manufacturing being strong.

Yes I do watch top gear but usually not for its economic insights regarding to UK economy.

The UK is run by wealthy land owning speculators. Land is far too expensive for manufacturing, where would the workers live? Its not economically viable. The people in charge simply want people in debt, they deal, trade, short, gamble create (Help to buy) ponzi schemes using debt.

Germany still manufacturer and probably the reason for their current success.

Check out cities like Newcastle, Shefield etc. They are scary ghost towns of their former selves. Its horrible.