Shipping Out Jobs | Daniel Griswold | Cato Institute: Commentary

Shipping Out Jobs | Daniel Griswold | Cato Institute: Commentary: "In 2008, US companies sold more than $6 trillion worth of goods and services through overseas affiliates — three times what US companies exported from America. And, no, those affiliates aren't mainly 'export platforms,' set up to ship goods back to the United States: Almost 90 percent of what they produce abroad is sold abroad.

It's not about access to 'cheap labor,' either: More than three-quarters of outward US manufacturing investment goes to other rich, developed economies like Canada and the European Union. That's where they find the wealthy customers, skilled workers, open markets, efficient infrastructure and political stability to operate profitably.

Indeed, US manufacturing companies invest a modest $2 billion a year in China, compared to $30 billion a year in Europe.

Nor do jobs created by those investments come at the expense of American workers. In fact, the more workers US multinationals hire abroad, the more they tend to hire at their parent operations in America."