Chapter 7
Logistics
China is the world’s largest logistics market, estimated at $1.76 trillion in 2018.1 For an economy based on supplying low-priced commodities for export, logistics in China is surprisingly expensive. For example, of the total amount spent on Chinese goods, approximately 20 percent goes into logistics. That’s over twice as much as what U.S. companies spend on logistics. Half of China’s logistics spend goes into transportation.
China has over 2.5 million miles of roads.2 Village roads (as shown in Figure 7.1) account for roughly half of all Chinese roads.
Figure 7.1 Typical village road
Courtesy of Xubiao Wu
Figure 7.2 Map ...
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