de-industrialization

The decreasing significance of primary and secondary industry, both in terms of employment and national production, to developed capitalist economies. Only a few countries, the United Kingdom among them, have experienced a decrease in manufacturing capacity as well as in manufacturing employment, but de-industrialization has affected many once strong industrial regions, such as the Belgian coalfield. In other cases, in spite of a decreased labour force, manufacturing still contributes significantly to the national economy in terms of output and exports.