Samsung Electronics (005930.KRX) has announced it is shifting output from China to Vietnam to secure lower wages and protect margins as the growth in sales of high-end handsets slows down, Bloomberg reported. According to a 2012 survey of pay by the Japan External Trade Organization, the base monthly salary for a factory worker in Beijing was US$466, compared with US$145 in Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi. By the time a new US$2 billion plant reaches full production in 2015, Vietnam will be making more than 40% of the phones that generate the majority of Samsung’s operating profit.
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