 In the early stages of the Chinese economy following economic reforms begun in 1978–79, the low cost of labor was an important component of advantage in gaining export market share over other exporting countries.Wages for blue collar workers have risen rapidly since that period, leading to predictions that textile products from China would no longer be competitive due to loss of low wage advantage.However, other advantages held by China over developing countries including "more efficient supply chain management, more modern infrastructure, and workers’ higher productivity", have allowed Chinese textile producers to keep costs low relative to other producers.