Returning to the US? It's a non-starter

Paul Ni believes it will be almost impossible for US companies to move their operations back to the United States to create jobs at home.

The 34-year-old principal for management consultants Roland Berger says there is no logic for companies that have major operations in Asia, and in particular China, to do that.

US President Donald Trump has called for US companies to bring their manufacturing operations home.

"You have, on the one hand, what he wants to come back to the US and on the other hand, the reality of what can actually come back," says Ni.

So far, only US companies in Mexico have said they are moving some of their operations back. General Motors has announced it is moving 450 jobs back. Ford has axed plans for a $1.6 billion plant in the US-neighboring country, which industry sources claim was never going to get the final go-ahead anyway.

Ni, speaking at his company's offices in Gateway Plaza, Beijing, says it would be highly damaging for some of his clients to up sticks from China and move back to the US.

He highlights the US chemicals company Cabot, which has been in China for 30 years and set up a joint venture with Hengyecheng in Wuhai in Inner Mongolia in September last year to make silica. The new investment will create thousands of jobs.

"It has done a considerable amount of work on that project, including building a strong relationship with the local government. Why would it have to close that plant and rebuild another one in the US? It would just be illogical."

He says Cabot, which has other hubs in Tianjin and Shanghai, is a prime example of a modern US multinational company, with 80 percent of its revenues coming from overseas.

"Its growth is driven by Asia, primarily by China. The American market is not really a growth area for the company."

Ni believes Chinese autoglass maker Fuyao's decision to set up an operation in Moraine, Ohio, in October was driven by very specific factors.