The integration of China and India alone into the global economy provided 1.2 billion new workers. Initially they had only basic skills, but both countries have vastly increased the percentage of the population with secondary or tertiary education. Thus the percentage of working-age people with secondary or tertiary education in emerging countries rose from 36% in 1980 to 56% in 2010. Meanwhile, this larger stock of skills is allowing some emerging countries to rapidly accumulate technology. This situation makes it more difficult for countries that are competitors and trading
partners to define their skills-training strategies, especially in Latin America. On the one hand, demand for commodities discourages the development of knowledgeintensive activities, while on the other, China is competing as the “global factory” (a label that refers to the country’s capacity to develop comparable advantages among a range of manufacturing industries). Moreover, the shifting wealth process has increased demand not only for better skills but also for soft skills, which allow greater adaptability and a more efficient search for competitive niches in a changing environment.