202510082227 Status: #idea Tags: #history #economics # Manufacturing is more conducive to economic growth than services Despite services making up the bulk of advanced economies today, it is not a good idea to start with services to make an economy rich. This is due to three core reasons: 1. Manufacturing can employ low-skilled labor with minimal training time, while services require lots of training before workers become productive. In poor countries without widespread higher education, manufacturing can effectively leverage much more of the labor pool 2. Manufacturing is much more exportable than services. Many services (eg medical operations, bike repairs) need to occur in person. Furthermore, many countries explicitly restrict services imports in trade agreements. Manufacturing thus allows developing countries to access larger markets and learn from more developed countries 3. Manufacturing benefits from productivity gains due to mechanization. This allows a small group of entrepreneurs to substantially increase the productivity of the population as a whole by importing machines --- # References [[How Asia works_ success and failure in the world's most dynamic region]]