Chinese imports were not entirely to blame for the U.S.economy losing between 2 million to 2.4 million manufacturing jobs from 1999 to 2011, according to a recent study.

The U.S. lost abiut 560,000 jmanufacturing jobs from 1999 to 2011, researchers said.

The indirect losses indicate the net job losses in other industries. The number of jobs lost to China imports is between 1.4 million and 1.8 million. Another indirect loss component is the imports from other trading partners of the U.S.

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According to the study, there is a positive correlation between the increase of imports from China and that from other countries.

However, the study has limitations. The limitations provide a venue for some experts to doubt the popular view: that importing goods from China leads to job loss in the U.S.

For one, the study's proponents did not take into account U.S. exports data.

The number of imports does not account for specific details, but the gross flow of imports alone.

For example, Chinese manufacturers used raw materials from the U.S. to manufacture the final product, which are then imported by the U.S.

The study registered the total number of products as imports from China and did not account for the exports made by the U.S.

Also, the study's framework is unable to predict job benefits.

Many experts look at this import dynamics with China as a threat to U.S. economic prospects. Sometimes, they take on a biased and bitter point of view.

In fact, the debate on the subject has been ongoing.

However, some experts think that this is not the way to look at the U.S.-China economic relationship.

They argue that both countries must look at how to optimize the import-export relationship for a better economic future.

TagsUS, imports, exports, Trade