China remains the most competitive country in the manufacturing sector, but it will be replaced by the U.S. by 2020 because of shortcomings in human resources, innovation, resources policies and infrastructure, a report released on Saturday noted.
Considering its relatively low labor costs and strong infrastructure policy, China was ranked No.1 in manufacturing competitiveness, according to a global survey of more than 500 companies, Guangzhou-based newspaper 21st Century Business Herald reported during the weekend.
The survey was part of a report released jointly by Chinese think tank ChinaInfo100 and multinational professional services provider Deloitte.
The report said China has established an ecosystem to encourage innovation, partially because research and development spending has increased significantly in recent years, according to the media report.
In some areas, China has already surpassed the U.S. -- for example, the Tianhe-2, a supercomputer developed by China's National University of Defense Technology, is the world's fastest supercomputer, it said.
However, global economic growth will continue to slow in 2016, which will depress industrial output. China is lagging behind the U.S. in several aspects such as human resources, innovation and the legal environment, the report said.
By 2020, the U.S. will become the most competitive country in manufacturing, followed by China, the report predicted. Germany will remain No.3.
In China, labor costs have increased about 150 percent in the past decade, which has become a major concern for manufacturers, the report said, adding China's aging society also worries many investors.
