Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Inexpensive Natural Gas Bringing Manufacturing Jobs Back to the US

I blogged about this a long time ago. I was taken to task by a drive-by reader for suggesting that manufacturing companies' decisions to move back to the US were due to inexpensive natural gas. I won't look for the link; it would take too much time even if I could find it. Doesn't matter.

It's being discussed again, this time over at Carpe Diem. I think it's been discussed there before. Nothing new, but it's a great story worth repeating.

But there's an additional little nugget. The manufacturing companies who never moved are already ahead of the game and taking advantage of this inexpensive energy. Their margins must be improving, and they must be more competitive compared to their Asian counterparts. Along with union rules in Germany and France, one can see why "foreign" auto manufacturers relocated in George, Alabama, and elsewhere in the the southern United States.

And all this job creation despite the headwinds / obstacles put up by the administration to hamstring the oil and gas industry. Go here for one of my favorite commentaries.

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