General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Stop Calling the TPP A Trade Agreement – It Isn’t [View all]DanTex
(20,709 posts)They are simply examples of production being moved to where it is cheapest. To that extent, whether Americans or Vietnamese people own the factories where production is outsourced to is irrelevant.
These two examples fit into the comparative advantage framework just as much as the "good" example from the OP, where one country is better at producing bananas, and the other is better at producing fertilizer. Because, in that example, banana workers in country A will end up losing their jobs, as will fertilizer plant workers in country B. And again, the people who own the fertilizer plants or banana plantations don't affect the argument.
Anytime one country has a comparative advantage, the only way this advantage will actually realize any benefits is if that country produces more goods in the advantageous category. Which necessarily means building more plants and hiring more people to produce those goods.