Reindustrialization of Developed Countries and the Impact of the New Industrial Revolution on the Pattern of International Division of Labor

Abstract

After the financial crisis, developed countries have generally gotten stuck in a situation in which the unemployment rate increased, the credit growth remained weak and the financial status worsened. Developed countries like the USA drew up the reindustrialization plan one after another in a bid to go out of the shadow of the financial crisis, recover their domestic economic growth and lower down the unemployment rate. In the wave of reindustrialization, developed countries have promoted the development of their industries, adjusted their economic structure, raised the proportion of the real economy and encouraged manufacturing enterprises to return back. From this perspective, the reindustrialization is the reflection and correction of the deindustrialization; on the other side, developed countries have further strengthened the driving roles of intangible assets such as technology, brand, patent and standard for economic growth. They have upgraded their industrial structure, initiated the new technology revolution, developed emerging industries with high added value and eliminated traditional industries with low technology content, waste of resources and environmental pollution. From this perspective, the reindustrialization is the continuation and upgrading of the deindustrialization. Although the reindustrialization may not change the basic characteristics of the pattern of international division of labor, it will pose an impact on the international industrial transfer of some industries, the development of emerging industries in develo** countries and the division of labor of global R&D activities to a certain extent in a period of time.