Irrational fear of industrialization of developing countries

Many developed countries fear that as poorer countries industrialize they will produce goods much cheaper than is possible elsewhere, thus leading to mass unemployment in many developed countries. This fear often leads to protectionist measures for domestic goods and trade barriers for the manufactured goods of developing countries. In fact the reverse is true. Just as better pay and working conditions for workers in industrialized countries contributed to the growth of their national economies, so the development of poor countries will strengthen the world economy. It is estimated that trade with developing countries has led to the net addition of several hundred thousand jobs to the economies of developed countries.