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At the time of writing, Mattel had just announced the recall of more than 18 million Mattel toys worldwide. The reason? The toys were found to have paint containing lead or small magnets that can come loose, causing serious safety scares to parents as well as the kids. In fact, just two weeks before this incident, Mattel had issued a recall for 1.5 million toys. And the problem doesn't end with toys. In fact, China is now infamous for the safety scares in many things, ranging from the food products, drugs, tires and even toothpaste.

Look around your household and you will find that many items you own are probably made in China, often known as the "Factory of the World". The efficiency and low cost of manufacturing makes it an attractive destination for companies to set up their factories there. But often, the quality control systems and regulatory framework for ensuring safety and quality is lacking in the factories of China, resulting in the poor quality of goods, and the health scares that we are familiar with today. Who knows what else is going to be on the list of "Dangerous Chinese Goods"?

Will all these warnings and news about the safety of Chinese goods deter consumers from purchasing Chinese goods, and therefore reduce China's dominance in the global manufacturing and trade? My view is that in the short term, consumers are likely to avoid Chinese goods, resulting in a fall in demand of these goods. However, such a trend is unlikely to persist and it is improbable that these incidents will derail the Chinese economy and its position as the global manufacturing giant.

Here are some of the factors to support my view:

Rising affluence of Chinese Middle Class driving increased consumption China's dominance in the areas of global manufacturing and trade is not simply due to the low cost of production and masses of cheap labour. It can also be attributed to the sharp rise in the domestic demand, resulting in the increase in volume of China's imports. This trend is driven by the rising affluence of the Chinese Middle Class arising from the nation's successful reforms and developments in the past two decades. The growing affluence, have resulted in large increases in the consumption of goods not only made in China, but also that from the rest of the world.

Political Will and Swift Reforms China's centralized government system enables it to take swift and stringent measures and policies to reform the manufacturing industry and to put in place

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