Article at a glance:

The onshoring option

Not all of the developed world's manufacturing jobs are destined to move to low-wage countries. Some manufacturing is best kept local, even in expensive locations like California. At least two-thirds of that state's manufacturing jobs are in capital-intensive or customer-service-intensive industries that would benefit little from offshoring to cheaper production locations.

The take-away

Staying local is preferable when labor inputs are low, product life cycles short, and obsolescence costs high.

Note: This brief article, focusing on economic development issues, comes from our print edition's Regional Report department.