Could Manufacturing Return to the U.S. in 2012?

How often have you turned over a plastic container, gadget or any household item for that matter, without seeing Made in China stamped on the bottom?

But times they are changin’ and if freight charges continue to rise, you may once again see Made in the U.S.A. or more likely, Made in Mexico on clothing tags and on the bottom of coffee mugs. A recent report released by AlixPartners found that if freight rates continue to inch up, that the savings of sending manufacturing overseas could be outweighed by the cost of bringing back that inventory to the U.S.  For China, the timing couldn’t be worse as the country struggles to fight wage inflation among other issues.

Industry experts predict that Mexico will be the more advantageous country to manufacture inventory since the costs have been the lowest (landed costs) for U.S. importers last year. Additionally, companies that currently lean on China to manufacture goods and products need to be ready to transition to other sources. Other countries with lower landed export costs include: India, Russia, Vietnam, and Romania.