One of the most optimistic was Tan Choon Shian, director of electronics and precision engineering at the Economic Development Board. The EDB was influential in bringing hard-disk-drive manufacturing to the island when the personal computer industry started to take off more than 20 years ago, and the EDB remains an influential force in this government-led market economy.

I asked Tan about the drive manufacturers, several of which now manufacture in lower-wage countries, such as Thailand. In some cases, he said, companies are moving up the HDD technology ladder in Singapore. "As the drives get so small, the companies must figure out how to automate the manufacturing process here in Singapore so they won't contaminate the drive," Tan said.

And if companies move out, that is all part of the woof and warp of a modern economy.

What about China? Again, Tan saw the silver lining.

Japan's economy is making a comeback partly because it is exporting machinery and parts to China's booming industrial base, said Tan, who spent eight years in Japan as an EDB staffer. "Singapore is not in a win-lose relationship with China. Singapore is linking itself to China and India," he said, with several Chinese firms setting up outposts in Singapore just as American, Japanese and European companies did in the 20th century.

With a population of only 4 million (1 million of them "foreigners," including Malaysians and Westerners), Singapore is unique in that many people use English at school and speak Mandarin, Malay or one of India's many languages, at home.

A taxi driver who took me out to see Chartered Semiconductor's IC manufacturing complex had a similar story to tell. A son who now works for Toyota Motor is working hard on his Chinese-language skills, expecting that will be his ticket to a better job tomorrow.

David Lammers covers SoC process equipment. Contact him at dlammers@cmp.com.