Chinese manufacturing deserves a higher premium:

A few days ago, I visited a friend's factory. My friend is in software development and shared an interesting example.
There was a company that needed system maintenance software. They couldn't find personnel overseas, so they asked my friend for a quote.
My friend's company has been very busy recently and didn't want to take on this business. But the client insisted on a quote, which they couldn't refuse. With a firm decision, they quoted an astronomical price of 370,000 yuan, while their usual rate is around 100,000 yuan.
As a result, the next day, the client transferred the payment and requested urgent completion.
My friend was stunned, but since the payment was made, and with such high profit margins, he personally flew over and spent three days on-site to get the job done.
When they coordinated with the client, he casually asked, "Why don't you negotiate the price?" The client's procurement replied, "What negotiation? We're hiring maintenance from the US; their quote is 300,000 USD, and they can only come after a month. We're suspicious that your quote was a mistake. Please communicate price details in advance next time and don't undervalue ourselves."
It really makes us appreciate how cheap Chinese manufacturing is. Just a 20-30% markup could significantly boost profits and lead to better development. We shouldn't compete against ourselves, as it’s unsustainable. The industry’s competitive ecosystem is too fierce and not healthy.
Why can Japanese Canon offer such high severance packages to employees? Because foreign companies have accumulated resources, and employee benefits, including guarantees, are all included in their quotes.
Our product margins are thinner than paper—apart from what the boss takes, the rest for employees can basically only cover the basic monthly salary. This is a serious problem and introduces many risks. That’s also why we face so many bad debts and why so many companies go bankrupt or shut down. $BNB