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As established in my last thread (https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=283866) the consensus was that a Confederate States of America which won its Independence due to Abraham Lincoln loosing reelection would be an economically poor, backward, agrarian society for most of its existence.(The thread assumes the CSA has survived to the present day). I see this being true through the late 20th century.

However I think that the free trade agreements and weakening labor unions in the U.S towards the end of the 20th century would propose an interesting opportunity for the CSA. Although the governments and economic systems between China and a hypothetical CSA are completely different both nations are largely agrarian. They are both places where labor laws and labor unions are practically non existent and wages in both countries are extremely low. The CSA is literally right next door as opposed to 3,000 miles away. This cuts down logistics and fuel cost headaches.

I see the CSA in this time line as very similar to China in the same period (late 90's early 2000's) in OTL. With it's similarities to China and its proximity to the U.S I see the CSA as being a place where many U.S firms looking to outsource their labor build factories. U.S firms will also like the CSA government which is severely limited in it's power to intervene in business. By 2013 I see the CSA hovering around second world status. While the factories are almost exclusively foreign owned as the profits flow back north they provide better wages than farming and even middle class opportunity for the lucky few who become managers.

Do you think had the CSA won the civil war and existed in the current era it would have become the U.S factory floor instead of China in the late 90's? With most businesses being foreign owned how much would this kind of investment actually help the economy?
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