AmCham China just posted an interview here [mp3] of me regarding the return of joint ventures to China. Josh Gartner conducted the interview and he did a great job.
Though joint ventures obviously never left China, there has definitely been a post-recession resurgence. Whereas in the past, most American companies that did joint ventures in China did so for very specific and China-particular reasons, the "new" joint venture is being done as a cost savings devise. The old joint venture was done when the Chinese company had something the foreign company could not supply. That something was usually along the lines of a distribution network or necessary government contacts.
We are now seeing way more of what I call cost-saving joint ventures. By way of example, an American manufacturer might choose to joint venture with an existing Chinese factory, rather than spend the money to build a factory from scratch. The reasons for this upsurge are pretty obvious. American companies have less money now and, perhaps even more importantly, less access to credit.
If you are thinking of going into China as a joint venture, I recommend you give it a listen.
And If you want to read more on joint ventures, check out the following:
-- "China Joint Ventures. Find Me A Good One...."
-- "Avoiding Mistakes in Chinese Joint Ventures."
-- "China's Joint Venture Jeopardy"
What do you think?