Historically, Shenzhen has faced waves of manufacturing exodus many times. In recent years, "relocation" has once again become a hotly discussed word among Shenzhen's business circles. The relocation of enterprises has also triggered industry concerns about the hollowing out of Shenzhen's industrial development. In this regard, Yang Haibo, a postdoctoral fellow at Shenzhen University, said that in the short term, it will have a certain adverse impact on Shenzhen's industry, but in the medium to long term, there will be no hollowing out of the industry. This is mainly due to the extremely sticky industrial chain and strong industrial resource allocation system formed in Shenzhen over the past 40 years of reform and opening up. Many relocating companies still cannot do without Shenzhen's strong industrial supporting system.
However, some scholars pointed out that Shenzhen needs to be connected as soon as possible in accordance with the central government’s plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to form a collaborative division of labor effect in the industrial chain, because the deepening of division of labor will bring further industrial expansion and innovation, making Industrial upgrading becomes possible. On the one hand, companies are relocating overseas, and on the other hand, they are attracting global investment. Shenzhen's industrial upgrading is already on the way.
The number of companies deregistering has increased significantly
Data obtained by Securities Times reporters from Tianyancha shows that from 2015 to 2019, the number of new companies in Shenzhen has stabilized at around 500,000 per year. In the past five years, more than 2.54 million new commercial entities have been added. In the first half of this year, Shenzhen had 235,000 newly registered companies, ranking first among first-tier cities.
It is worth noting that the number of company cancellations/revocations was only 14,766 and 22,477 in 2015 and 2016 respectively, but it suddenly increased to 89,800 in 2017, and reached 228,765 in 2019. Compared with 2015, it has increased by 15 times.
Among these cancellation data, many are closures, and some are companies that have moved overseas. Academic circles divide enterprise relocation into five steps: relocation needs - site selection and inspection - investment and factory construction - production capacity relocation - all relocation. Taxpayers and legal persons need to be deregistered at the place of registration only after all relocation. Shenzhen mainly relocates production capacity out of the country, and many of the companies that have moved out have retained their headquarters, R&D, and pilot testing, so the number of companies that have actually moved out will be relatively large.
Shenzhen Shunwenjia Technology Co., Ltd. was established in 2008. It is mainly engaged in the die-cutting business of the mobile phone industry chain. It has been deeply involved in Shenzhen for more than ten years and has personal experience of the process of relocating production capacity of the mobile phone industry chain. Zeng Chujia, the person in charge of the company, told reporters that at present, basically all the medium and large-scale customers have moved out of Shenzhen. “As long as the factory has more than 1,000 people, they have moved out because this kind of factory requires a lot of labor and the factory building is large. It’s more difficult to achieve in Shenzhen. Generally, we just keep a headquarters in Shenzhen and the production bases are in other places.” Smaller customers mainly relocate to cities outside the province, while larger customers mostly relocate their production capacity to other provinces. The customer's move away from Shenzhen means an increase in costs for him. First, logistics costs, as goods have to be sent to other places by express delivery; second, communication costs, such as proofing and on-site communication, are not as convenient and efficient as before.
A factory owner who has been engaged in the stretch film business in Shenzhen since the early 2000s also said that many customers have moved, mostly to Dongguan, Huizhou, Zhuhai, and Heyuan, and some have moved to Vietnam. ,India. "Customers who moved to the Pearl River Delta are still there; customers from other provinces will be hired based on their qualifications; those who moved abroad will not be hired."
In August this year, Boss Lin opened a touch screen in Jiangxi The factory officially started operation. Before that, he had opened a factory in Shenzhen for more than ten years. At its largest scale, it had more than 500 employees. "Although the factory is outside Shenzhen's original customs, the rent has reached close to 50 yuan/square meter, and industrial electricity consumption is 1 yuan. We consume a lot of electricity, and it is difficult for profits to cover the costs."
< p> After moving to Jiangxi, the rent is only 6 yuan/square meter. If the production capacity reaches the standard, the rent can be waived. Coupled with tax incentives and reductions in electricity bills and labor costs, the situation will be greatly improved. The biggest concern is the loss of customers, but the factory's two main customers have already relocated to Jiangxi in advance, so the adverse impact is within the tolerable range.Boss Lin said: "Logistics is now convenient. Shipments from Jiangxi to Shenzhen and Dongguan usually arrive the next day. If the delivery time is slightly extended, the cost will be lower, and we can also offer customers a slightly lower price. Customers are still willing to do it.
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Hidden concerns about enterprise relocation are highlighted
The "Special Work Report on the Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Shenzhen in 2018" submitted to the Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress Standing Committee for review in mid-2019 pointed out that in 2018 , 91 industrial enterprises above designated size in Shenzhen have relocated, accounting for approximately 1.1% of the total number of industrial enterprises above designated size. The cumulative total industrial output value in Shenzhen is 60 billion yuan, accounting for 1.95% of the total industrial output value above designated size in the city that year. Enterprises have relocated overseas. The risk cannot be ignored.
The report points out that Shenzhen’s manufacturing enterprises are currently relocating due to factors such as expansion needs, rising comprehensive business costs, and other cities’ increased efforts to attract investment. Some relocations have triggered overall outbound migration. The relocation of leading enterprises will lead to the risk of the supply chain relocating, thereby endangering the integrity of Shenzhen's industrial chain.
The aforementioned factory of Mr. Lin falls into the category of following the relocation of leading enterprises.
p>Yang Haibo said that there are three types of entities relocating from Shenzhen: those headquartered in Shenzhen with subsidiaries in other regions, those headquartered in Shenzhen without subsidiaries in other regions, and those headquartered in other regions with subsidiaries in Shenzhen. The willingness and demand of the first type of relocation are not the same, but they generally show three major characteristics. First, there are fewer overall relocations, but more part of the production capacity is relocated. Shenzhen's strong industrial supporting facilities and broad market give enterprises the advantage. Second, relocation has accelerated in recent years, which is closely related to the lack of industrial space and high housing prices and rents; third, some regulated enterprises and high-tech enterprises have relocated, among which electronic information manufacturing companies account for a large proportion of relocation. To a certain extent, it has damaged Shenzhen’s innovation capabilities.
In addition, in recent years, foreign companies such as Philips, Samsung Electronics, Epson, Olympus, and Honeywell have also moved away from Shenzhen.
< p> Many outstanding enterprises in Shenzhen soon became the largest taxpayer in the local area. Around 2015, Huawei's industry gradually moved to Dongguan. Since 2015, Huawei has been the largest taxpayer in Dongguan City every year. In 2019, Dongguan City commended the top 20 companies in terms of main business revenue. Huawei ranked first with 463.2 billion yuan. OFILM's production capacity was transferred to Nanchang and won the 2019 "Advanced Taxpaying Enterprise Award". Nanchang OFILM's revenue in 2019 was 21.3 billion yuan. OFILM's annual report shows revenue of 52 billion yuan in 2019. Luxshare Precision, headquartered in Shenzhen, had revenue of 62.5 billion yuan in 2019, but only 5.55 billion yuan belonged to Shenzhen.Making industrial upgrading possible
p>With the rapid development of the city, the rising cost of living and limited land resources have become problems that Shenzhen must face in its development. The relocation of enterprises is also a spontaneous behavior that conforms to the development laws of the market economy. How does Shenzhen solve the high cost. The fate of "hollowing out" of extrusion?
"Looking at the computers we use, is the computer itself more important or the software? It’s software, it’s virtual. Without software, is there a computer? We now say that the United States uses chips to choke us. If we don’t study chips, the manufacturing industry will not develop. "Tang Jie believes that in the future, Shenzhen must follow the central government's plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and connect as soon as possible to form a collaborative division of labor effect in the industrial chain. The deepening of division of labor will bring further industrial expansion and innovation, making industrial upgrading possible.
Historically, Shenzhen has had three crises of manufacturing exodus. In the first half of 1995, Taiwanese and Hong Kong capital moved out of the country under the "three come and one supplement" model; around 2003, low-end manufacturing After relocation, only the headquarters or R&D centers were retained; and from 2011 to 2012, foreign investment was gradually withdrawn due to high manufacturing costs. These three manufacturing withdrawals did not cause Shenzhen to collapse. On the contrary, Shenzhen stopped following and merged. Run, leap to the lead.
Yang Haibo believes that from the perspective of decision-makers, all efforts must be made to relocate companies that are at the core of the industrial chain, represent technological competitiveness, and influence the future development direction. Methods should be used to retain and ensure Shenzhen's industrial innovation capabilities, such as understanding the needs of enterprises that intend to relocate abroad (lack of industrial space, rent pressure, etc.). On this basis, "move with emotion and understand with reason", and strive to "response to all requests" " to accurately solve the problems and difficulties faced by enterprises. For enterprises that must move overseas, we can learn from the Japanese "mother factory" model to encourage and support enterprises to keep their headquarters, R&D and pilot tests in Shenzhen to ensure that their innovation capabilities are not affected. < /p>
He believes that as early as 2013, Shenzhen formulated a support plan for future industries to support the development of life and health, marine, aerospace and other industries.
At present, Shenzhen must continue to expand and strengthen life and health, marine, aerospace and other industries in conjunction with the construction of pioneer demonstration zones. It must also continue to make efforts in 5G, artificial intelligence, cyberspace science and technology and other industries to break through "stuck necks" technology to enhance the security and stickiness of Shenzhen’s industrial chain. In addition, in view of the development trend of Shenzhen, we must vigorously support the development of the science and technology service industry and break down the barriers between industry, academia and research.
Take 5G construction as an example. On August 17 this year, on the eve of the first anniversary of the construction of the pilot demonstration zone, Shenzhen announced that it would be the first to enter the 5G era. It leads the world in total 5G standard essential patents and ranks first in the world in 5G base station and terminal shipments. It focuses on the construction of Shenzhen High-tech Zone, Longgang, 5G industry clusters such as Pingshan have gradually formed a 5G ecosystem in which high-end enterprises lead development and the upstream and downstream industrial chains are deeply integrated.
In June this year, the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology issued a notice to solicit opinions from the public on the "Shenzhen Digital Economic Industry Innovation and Development Implementation Plan." The plan lists 12 key support areas, including artificial intelligence industry, blockchain and other industries, as well as other new business formats.
Qichacha data shows that as of the end of July this year, the total number of artificial intelligence-related companies in Shenzhen exceeded 46,000. In addition, there are more than 44,000 blockchain-related companies nationwide, with the largest number of related companies in Guangdong Province, and more than 5,000 blockchain-related companies in Shenzhen, accounting for 11.67% of the country.