Flextronics International expects China to remain its preferred base of production despite rising labor costs. It plans to hire about 20,000 Chinese workers next year after the opening of its power components manufacturing complex in Ganzhou in Jiangxi province at the end of August. It is also on track to launch its main computer products development center in the Wuzhong district of Suzhou in Jiangsu province by the end of the year. Chief Executive Mike McNamara said Flextronics had also made Shenzhen the site of a large production facility for advanced medical devices. “Despite the fact that wages have risen about 25%, China still provides lower cost [for contract electronics manufacturers] than other places,” McNamara said. Half of Flextronics’ more than 200,000 workers worldwide are located in China. “China probably remains my favorite place to manufacture in the world because of the good work ethic, a very sizable labor force, a lot of know-how, all components suppliers are there, and it has a great distribution system that reaches markets around the world,” he said.