Global Value Chains, Industrial Hubs, and Economic Development in the Twenty-first Century

Abstract

This chapter uses the global value chain (GVC) framework to analyse the shifting strategies of key lead firms and first-tier suppliers in the athletic footwear and electronics industries. Growing cost pressures for labour and raw materials, as well as the potential political disruption from the escalating ‘trade war’ between the United States and China and the accelerating technological disruption sparked by the digital economy on both the demand side (e.g. e-commerce) and the supply side (e.g. automation) of GVCs, are encouraging brand leaders and major suppliers in both GVCs (such as Adidas and Nike in footwear, and Apple and Foxconn in electronics) to pursue automation in select factories in their supply chains. However, the industrial hubs where athletic footwear and electronics production is concentrated remain overwhelmingly labour-intensive, both in China and elsewhere in Asia (such as Vietnam and Indonesia) where big suppliers are moving to diversify their options.