China very specifically and deliberately set out to build up its export capability in a way that was highly centralized and consolidated (specifically around th

China very specifically and deliberately set out to build up its export capability in a way that was highly centralized and consolidated (specifically around the Yangtze Delta), whereby entire supply chains were located next to each, lowering the cost of production and making it difficult for other countries to compete even if they had lower wages. This was not by accident. The other advantage China has was continuity of government economic policies because you had pretty much the same people in charge for a couple of decades which gave time for the policies to take root. Of course China is a totalitarian police state, and not a place I'd want to be (I did live there for some years). But people put up with that because of the hyper economic growth in the 80s-00s; it's hard to think about freedoms and human rights if you can't even feed your family. Once people reach a state where they have their basic needs met then they begin to value other things (like individual freedoms).