China has an advantage over India to receive US scrap metal because the scrap is shipped on the backhaul to China. There is a larger demand for goods exported from China compared to India. Additionally, it costs less to transport the metal from the US to China, since it is geographically closer.
The chapter discusses the great difference in imported versus exported containers in China: 90% of containers are for exports. This is a stark illustration of how globalization can lead to huge trade imbalances. Goods are produced where production costs are low. This concentrates the production.
Jared Diamond's article (reviewed earlier) examined how human history unfolded. His themes centralized around the ability to adapt and innovate to exploit the resources available. Modern transportation is a huge adaptation by society to enable further spread and easier exploitation of resources.
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