中国制造业向高端转型 Upmarket response to low-cost challenge

The Austrian-run Rondor housewares factory in Shaping, Guangdong, opened in 1978, becoming one of the first foreign companies to enter China after the Cultural Revolution. Its first product was a $1.50 whisk.

1978年，奥地利人在广东省沙坪镇成立了华登高质餐具有限公司(Rondor houseware)——这是“文化大革命”后第一批进入中国的外资企业之一。华登的第一件产品是一款搅拌器，售价1.5美元。

Since then, Rondor housewares has transformed. Now it makes designer candlesticks for Scandinavian lifestyle brands, which can retail for more than $1,000.

自那时起，华登高质餐具已经逐渐转型。如今，它为一些斯堪的纳维亚风格的家居品牌生产高档烛台，每支的零售价可超过1000美元。

Just down the road, Rondor textiles, a sister company, tells a similar story. Its first product, a tracksuit for a western sportswear brand, retailed for about $30. Now it makes high-end ski suits for niche European brands, which retail for as much as $1,700.

就在华登高质餐具公司所处的同一条路上，坐落着它的姊妹公司——华登高质时装。华登高质时装的发展历程与华登高质餐具类似：它的第一件产品是为某西方运动品牌生产的一款运动服，仅售30美元；如今，它为欧洲小众品牌生产的高档滑雪服，每套售价高达1700美元。

Rondor shows how China’s manufacturing has responded to the challenge of increased competition from low-cost neighbours, and moved towards producing goods that require more investment and more skills.

来自一些低成本邻国的竞争越来越激烈，中国制造业应对挑战的方式是转型——生产需要更多投资和工艺要求更高的产品。华登就是一个例子。

While notions of China’s move up the value chain may conjure images of high-tech industries such as electronics, the reality is rather different.

说起中国向价值链高端转移，人们可能会想到电子业等高科技产业，但现实情形与此截然不同。

China’s high-tech manufacturers have relied heavily on imported know-how, but worries about intellectual property mean foreign companies are increasingly hesitant about transferring technology to Chinese partners. Much of the high-tech manufacturing in China is still confined to assembling components produced elsewhere – adding little value to the end product.

中国的高科技制造业对引进的技术依赖度很高，但出于对知识产权保护的担心，外国企业在向中国合作伙伴转移技术方面越来越迟疑。中国的高科技制造业大部分仍局限于组装产自别处的零部件，这一环节在成品价格中所占部分微乎其微。

A report last year by the Asian Development Bank estimated the different costs and components that went into producing an Apple iPhone. It found that, of the $178.96 a single handset costs to produce, more than $60 went to companies in Japan, $30 to Germany, and $23 to South Korea. China’s contribution was limited to just $6.50 – the cost of assembly.

亚洲开发银行(Asian Development Bank)去年发布了一份报告，对一部苹果(Apple) iPhone生产过程中不同成本和部件的价值流向做了估算。报告发现，生产一部苹果手机所需的178.96美元成本中，有超过60美元流向了日本企业，30美元流向了德国企业，23美元流向了韩国企业。中国所得仅6.5美元——这就是组装的价值。

But in areas such as textiles and household goods China has been making big strides.

但在纺织、家居等行业，中国一直在大跨步前进。

Li Cui, China economist at RBS, wrote in a recent research note: “China has remained very competitive in its exports, especially in light manufacturing. Product upgrades and productivity gains have countered the rise in the unit labour cost. There are regional competitors in these markets, but evidence of China losing out is still absent.”

苏格兰皇家银行(RBS)首席中国经济学家崔历在最近的一份研究报告中写道：“中国在出口领域仍保持着强劲的竞争力，特别是在轻工制造品方面。产品档次提升和生产率提高抵消了单位劳动成本的上涨。尽管在轻工业品市场上存在一些区域竞争者，但还没有证据表明中国开始落于下风。”

In the years since 2005, when the renminbi has appreciated by almost 25 per cent against the US dollar, China has increased its global share of light-manufacturing exports from 22 per cent to about a third, according to Ms Cui.

崔历表示，从2005年人民币相对美元升值约25%以来，中国在轻工制造品出口方面所占的全球市场份额由22%提高到了三分之一左右。

Yet the need to keep specialising and increase margins is pressing. Between 2004 and 2009, unit labour costs rose 50 per cent. Small manufacturers, many of which operate on wafer-thin margins, are faced with a simple choice, go up the value chain, or go bust.

然而，加强专业性和提高利润率的任务仍十分紧迫。在2004年至2009年之间，单位劳动成本上涨了50%。大多奉行薄利多销的小型制造商被迫面临一个简单的选择：或者向价值链高端转移，或者破产。

The average monthly salary across Rondor’s factories is Rmb3,000 ($470), comparable to what factory workers earn in Romania, and made possible by the wider margins retailers enjoy on the more sophisticated products.

华登各工厂的工人平均月薪为3000元人民币（合470美元），与罗马尼亚的工人相当。华登生产的产品较为复杂，利润率也更高，因此能够支付得起这样水平的工资。

“‘Made in China’ is now a sign of real quality in the ski wear market. We used to leave the labels out. But now we make sure people see them,” says Patrick Waibel who manages Rondor’s factories in Guangdong.

华登广东工厂负责人帕特里克?华贝尔(Patrick Waibel)表示：“如今，在滑雪服市场上，‘中国制造’已是名副其实的高质量标志。以前我们故意不贴标签。但如今我们把标签放在显眼的位置，确保人们容易看见。”

As a foreign-owned family-run company, Rondor has an advantage over its local competitors: access to capital.

作为一家外资家族制企业，华登相对于中国本土的竞争者们有一项优势：不差钱。

Over the past year, China has raised interest rates five times and increased the amount of capital banks have to deposit with the central bank. China’s big banks have become more selective in lending – favouring large, longer-term loans to big state-backed enterprises.

过去一年间，中国5次加息，并提高了存款准备金率。中国各大银行放贷越来越有选择性——倾向于向大型国资背景企业发放高额长期贷款。

For SMEs, this change has led to a credit squeeze, which is pushing many to the brink of bankruptcy,

这一变化导致中小企业面临信贷紧缩，许多濒临破产的边缘。

Some SMEs have been forced to turn to the informal banking sector – where interest rates can reportedly reach 70-80 per cent.

一些中小企业被迫求助于地下钱庄——据称利息可能高达70%至80%。

Unable to meet payments, some local businessmen in manufacturing hubs such as the eastern city of Wenzhou have simply skipped town.

在一些制造业中心，如东部城市温州，还不起钱的部分当地商人干脆跑路。