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China’s economy has developed rapidly since its evolution from a planned economy, but only recently have consumers built up enough trust in the system to deviate from face-to-face cash transactions that they have relied on for decades. Using credit as a means to purchase goods is a relatively new concept to the Chinese, but its… Continue reading The Rise of China’s Credit-Driven Economy →

Much recent literature on US-China trade relations has focused on the possibility of a trade war between the countries with the two largest GDPs in the world. New US President Donald Trump has consistently accused the Chinese of manipulating their currency, which is an outdated claim. Most conservative estimates suggest that China has spent over… Continue reading Winners and Losers: US-China Trade War →

China’s rapid economic growth into an industrial production powerhouse is well-documented but recent developments suggest this trend could be reversing. Known as the world’s largest production/expenditure economy, China is slowly transitioning into an economy centered on consumption and service. Growth in China’s industrial sector has slowed from 7.3% to 6.0% over the past 3 years… Continue reading China’s Service Economy →

It is not hard to understand how China, with its massive, young, and tech savvy population, buys more iPhones and smartphones than any other nation on earth. The Chinese also make almost all of them. There’s a clichéd animosity toward the “Made in China” phenomenon here in the states, for many reasons: The loss of American jobs… Continue reading iPhone City →

Data released in the first week of January indicate that Chinese investments in global real estate continued to grow rapidly in 2016, hitting a record $33 billion. The United States is the most popular venue for Chinese investment, followed by Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Australia. As the Chinese upper class continues to expand, global real… Continue reading Chinese Investment in Foreign Real Estate: Motivations and New Regulations →

It is a generally accepted fact that the 1978 reforms of Deng Xiaoping centered on intrinsic motivations have contributed greatly to the economic expansion of China and have secured the country’s legitimacy as an economic powerhouse.  This shift has allowed for consumption be classified as the main driver of economic growth.  But what seems to… Continue reading The Importance of TVE’s in China’s Early Economic Reforms →

After China’s feudal system was abolished and a republican government was formed in the 1920s, a sector of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) was created. This sector was virtually eliminated in the 1950s with the collectivization of agriculture and the nationalization of industry under Mao’s Communist government. Enterprises had to seek approval from the government… Continue reading Shanghai’s Mobike and the Entrepreneurial Culture in China →

A major complaint frequently lodged against Chinese industry, frequently by US politicians or media outlets, relates to state-subsidized industrial production that allows Chinese producers to sell below cost in international markets. Most recently these complaints are focused on the aluminum industry. In the graph below, one can see the dramatic increase in Chinese aluminum production… Continue reading On Chinese Aluminum Capacity Growth →

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You – like this post author – are “…almost incapable of reading anything that [you’ve] written before. It’s just too boring when you already know what the next sentence is going to say; at best [you] can skim. So it’s very hard for [YOU] to catch mistakes…” WHERE – whoops, there goes a typo –… Continue reading Proofreading your own stuff →

I use Del.icio.us to create a list of news items relevant for the course. You can find those on the right – I use a pre-made “widget” that includes an ad. (A second version should be at the bottom of the right; scroll down…) If any of you have programming skills I’m sure you can… Continue reading News Links →

We will continue developing our segment on exchange rates and comparisons. In the background are foreign exchange rates. We will return to the issue of why hold forex (introduced to hang in the background). Our quick discussion pointed to the following motives/needs: 1. trade: to pay for goods & services purchased from China (incl tourism… Continue reading Intl Comparisons: Continued →

Peter Hessler, 2010. Country Driving. NY: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-180409-0 but also in other formats.