"Going against the current, this book argues that competitiveness - that is, the competitiveness of the manufacturing sector - matters to the long-term health of the U.S. economy and particularly to its long-term capacity to raise the standard of living of its citizens. The book challenges the arguments popularized most recently by Paul Krugman that competitiveness is a dangerous obsession that distracts us from the question most central to solving the problem of stagnant real income growth, namely, what causes productivity growth, especially in the service sector.". "The central argument is that, if the U.S. economy is to achieve full employment with rising real wages, it is necessary to enhance the competitiveness of its tradable goods sector. The book shows that current account deficits cannot be explained by macroeconomic mismanagement but are rather the consequence of an uncompetitive manufacturing sector.". "This book will be of interest to economists, political scientists, and business researchers concerned with the place of the manufacturing sector in the overall health of the U.S. economy, issues of industrial policy and industrial restructuring, and the conditions for rising standards of living."--BOOK JACKET.