I am talking about Global markets. Historically Japan & South Korea manufactured steel and exported it globally made from our Iron Ore & Met Coal.
Both Governments supported private enterprise steel makers during the fledgling origins while our silly Governments look on ( we like looking)
I visited Sweeden's major car, truck & machinery manufacturer in the 1980s and I was astounded that this manufacturer imported Japanese steel made from our iron ore & coking coal!
Steel manufacturing, casting etc is mostly automated and and labour input constitutes a minor cost unlike 50 years ago. We have, however , serious shipping cost problems except bulk commodities with minimum Aussie labour content/ton.
For example, wharfage costs to load a car onto a ship in Yokohama is about $130 AUD. To unload that same vehicle in Brisbane costs 4 times that without quarrantine, customs and agency fees. We really need a clean-up here if we want to be internationally competitive.
To compete in the Global market we need: -Tax free manufacturing hubs exclusively for export -Shipping hubs attached to these Tax free zones with miminimal red tape and union interference -Technical Institutes attached to these manufacturing hubs to skill & upgrade manufacturing workers -That all enterprises in this zone are majority Aussie owned -That special branched of Austrade & CSIRO are located within these zones. -Outlaw transfer pricing in any form so that Australia benefits from the true export pricing.
The objective should be to add Aussie value to our basic resources, diversify trade and imprive national security via the extra economic and trade benefits of these special zones.
