US has lost over one quarter of high-tech manufacturing jobs in past decade
Ten countries in Asia together invested $399 billion in S&T research and development, as much as the United States, in 2009. Image Source: National Science Board
For the first time in history, the Asian region in 2009 spent as much on research and development in science and technology (S&T) fields as the United States, the traditional leader in high technology investment. The spending has cost American jobs because multinational companies, many of them US-based, locate more of their knowledge-intensive, research and development jobs in Asia, according to a new report by the US National Science Board. During the last decade, the United States has lost nearly three in ten high-tech manufacturing jobs.
Investments in science and technology (S&T) infrastructure are important for knowledge-intensive economies and high-paying jobs. The report states:
Over time, global S&T capabilities have grown, nowhere more so than in Asia. … Western- and Japan-based [companies] are increasingly joined … by newcomers headquartered in developing nations. In most broad aspects of S&T activities, the United States continues to maintain a position of leadership. But it has experienced a gradual erosion of its position in many specific areas.
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