Domestic Hero

LA Times: Chinese firms bargain hunting in U.S.

2008-05-07T23:38:00Z

State incentives and a weak dollar are spurring investment by a growing wave of Chinese entrepreneurs. From Spartanburg to Los Angeles, they are building U.S. factories, buying companies and investing in business and real estate.

Fortune: You have 7 years to learn Mandarin

2008-04-30T17:24:00Z

While short-term investors are already cashing in on China’s growth by playing the global commodities boom, smart long-term thinkers are contemplating what happens when China matures from an exporter of cheap goods to a competitor in sectors where the U.S. is dominant - technology, brand building, finance.

Reuters: Obama: U.S. must push China on currency

2008-04-14T15:51:00Z

"What we need to do is just be better bargainers and say ‘Look, here’s the bottom line: You guys keep on manipulating your currency, we are going to start shutting off access to some of our markets,” Obama said at a forum hosted by the Alliance for American Manufacturing, which has launched a statewide “China Cheats. Pennsylvania Loses” campaign.

PR: SKYY Vodka, Made in the USA, Proudly Supports Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

2008-04-13T05:55:00Z

Skyy Vodka responds to Swedish Absolut Vodka advertising that depicted western North America as Mexican territory as an “ideal time”.

Slate: The Last Days of Cheap Chinese

2008-04-09T16:24:00Z

Why American consumers are about to start paying more for clothes, electronics, toys, and just about everything else.

Wired: Once the World’s Great Factory, China Is the Next Great Innovator

2008-04-01T15:57:00Z

"The country’s hottest export is actually cold cash. Until recently, China’s pinstripe brigades were happy to stash the national hoard—$1.5 trillion in foreign exchange reserves, and counting—in US T-bills and other financial no-brainers. Now they’re buying resources to feed their global ambition: raw materials [...]”

NPR: Clinton, Obama and NAFTA: A Non-Issue?

2008-03-27T01:39:00Z

"The U.S. trade deficit with China is more than three times greater than with Mexico or Canada. So, if you think free trade hurts the United States, China is a much bigger threat than NAFTA.”

Sierra: Ways & Means: The China Syndrome

2008-03-09T00:22:00Z

"The problem is not China. The problem is a business model in which companies outsource manufacturing under short-term, low-cost contracts to the firm that will follow their design standards most cheaply. [...] We’re not really paying for quality goods anymore--we’re paying for high-priced marketing and design combined with low-wage, exploited workers producing inferior products using shoddy safety and environmental standards.”

NYT: Despite Nafta Attacks, Clinton and Obama Haven’t Been Free Trade Foes

2008-02-29T01:34:00Z

"Both appear to have been part of the conflicted middle ground within the Democratic Party that is groping for a proper balance between being friendly to free trade agreements, believing they are beneficial to the economy, but also seeking to level the playing field for the United States “

World Sock Capital Suffers From Duty-Free Imports

2007-11-28T01:42:00Z

"Globalization has been really bad for the sock industry of Fort Payne, AL.”

Halloween costume teeth pulled from US shops

2007-10-31T16:08:01Z

Chinese-made “Ugly Teeth” are designed to be worn in the mouth, adding to the likelihood of lead ingestion.

Indian ‘slave’ children found making low-cost clothes destined for Gap

2007-10-29T14:48:00Z

Gap said it was unaware that clothing intended for the Christmas market had been improperly subcontracted to a sweatshop using child labor.

Mattel recalls 55,000 Chinese-made toys for lead

2007-10-26T00:47:00Z

Fourth recall in six months for Chinese-made toys containing lead paint.

Cub Scout badge is latest Chinese lead recall

2007-10-09T05:46:00Z

Regardless of the lead issue, why are Boy Scout badges being made in China?