4. Evolution of the Structure of World Product Space

From the perspective of the global economic development, countries with excellent performance in economic growth, whether developed or developing countries, or the rising stars—the Four Asian Tigers, or the newly industrialized developing countries such as Malaysia, all follow one principle without exception. That is, countries select their suitable products in line with their comparative advantages, develop competitive industries or cultivate corresponding competitive advantages by undertaking international industrial transfers to realize the accumulation of capital and an economic takeoff, and finally win a place in the international markets. On the contrary, for countries disobeying the Comparative Advantage Theory and adopting the forging ahead strategy to forcibly give priority to non-competitive industries, their economies will usually deviate from the optimal industrial structure determined by the factor endowment structure, then encumber the accumulation of capital and the speed of economic development. As a result, the economic development shall strictly comply with the comparative advantage of each phase determined by the factor endowment structure.