BAOTOU, China (Kyodo) After a bankrupt state-run steel factory laid him off in 1995, Zhou Peng set up an auto repair shop, attracting customers he knew from his old job of eight years.

But the business didn't run right because he didn't know how to formulate a long-term equipment upgrade budget or stop workers from being exposed to poisons. And he would use roadsides as his workshop.

"At that time, I could do only that to live," said Zhou, 35. "To survive, you have to rely on your skills."