2012商务英语中级阅读理解冲刺试题（19）
看惯了我们中国作者分析中国出口面临的挑战和挫折，今天我们看看德国作者怎么以他们的角度出发阐述“应付“中国挑战之策。本文作者是赫尔曼•西蒙，咨询公 司Simon-Kucher & Partners董事长兼创始人，著有畅销书《21 世纪的隐形冠军》(Hidden Champions of the 21st Century)。
When it comes to competition in global markets, especially in exports, China and Germany are increasingly on a collision course. Germany was the number one exporter from 2003 t0 2008. In 2009 China overtook Germany to become number one — and it will stay there.
In 2010 both nations again showed strong export growth and defended their positions, well ahead of the US in exports. With remarkable similarities between Chinese and German exporters, the competition will be tough.
wｗw.ExamＷ.CoM Hidden Champions
Why is Germany, a comparatively small country, so strong in exports? The explanation lies in its “hidden champions”, little known mid-sized world market leaders. My total count of these companies is around 2,500 worldwide, and 1,200 of them are from Germany. They alone account for about one quarter of German exports.
Surprisingly I found a rather similar structure in China. 68 percent of all Chinese exports come from companies with fewer than 2,000 employees — not from large corporations. It is also amazing that China already has well over 100 hidden champions, probably more than highly developed countries such as France, the UK or Japan.
Strong ambitions
One outstanding characteristic of these firms is their extreme ambition with regard to global market leadership. This is the aim that drives hidden-champion entrepreneurs in both China and Germany. In numerous talks in China I asked the audience, “Who wants to become world market leader?” Always more than half raised their hands, very similar to Germany. These ambitions will unavoidably lead to a competitive collision in the global marketplace.
Germans as low-price competitors
Globalization usually starts with exports and sales. Manufacturing follows, then R&D, and later on complete management functions. Most German companies are in the late stages of this process. They are not only building huge manufacturing sites in China, but also moving R&D for cheaper and simpler products there. Siemens and Bosch are well advanced on this path. Schenck Process, a world leader in industrial weighing and measuring processes, has even moved its complete competence centre for the mining industry to Beijing. The only way for German companies to remain competitive against the Chinese in the low-cost, low price-segment is to “become Chinese” themselves.
