NYT: As its Economy Sprints Ahead, China's People Are Left Behind

Barboza, David (October 9, 2011), As Its Economy Sprints Ahead, China’s People Are Left Behind, New York Times:New York

The New York Times, as part of its series on the Chinese Economy, recently published a very interesting article on the nature of Chinese economic growth, its reliance on being driven by large (mostly state owned) enterprises that are in turn reliant on cheap loans from Chinese government owned banks.  No news there; however the interesting point the article makes is that this system runs at the experience of the average Chinese saver (and there are a lot of them in a country that has one of the highest savings rates in the world) in a system that essentially reallocates the country's wealth from China's still relatively poor saving middle class to the wealthy.  This is largely achieved due to the relatively high level of inflation in the country (currently at around 6%) and the low interest rates (currently at around 3%) that banks give to depositors who save with them.  This essentially means ( in a crude calculation) that Chinese depositors are suffering from an unseen tax on their savings (through inflation) of 3% a year.  Money that is essentially used to subsidise these cheap loans that state banks are giving to state owned companies that in turn is playing a role in driving the country's booming housing market and is, in turn, making housing too expensive for most people to afford. 

The full article can be read here: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/10/business/global/households-pay-a-price-for-chinas-growth.html?_r=1&ref=business&src=me&pagewanted=all

China's soft (not hard) landing

Roach, Stephen S. (September 30, 2011). China’s Landing – Soft not Hard, Project Syndicate, retrieved October 4, 2011.

Business as usual in Beijing*

A while ago I posted a piece by the famously pessimistic Nouriel Roubini (the man that successfully predicted the Crash of 2008) about his similarly pessimistic outlook for the future of the Chinese economy.  Recently Stephen Roach (of Yale University) published an article that is more upbeat and argues that although it looks likely that China's economy will slow down it will enjoy a relatively welcome 'soft landing' as opposed to Roubini's tragic 'hard landing'.

Although Roach notes a number of the serious economic problems that the Chinese economy is currently facing - such as the serious property bubble, reducing property inflation and the US$1.7 trillion of local-government debt - he also notes a number of factors that the economy has going for it, such as the unprecedented large urbanisation of China and the ample liquidity of Chinese banks to absorb potential losses. He also correctly points out that the government is taking the risks of the property bubble seriously and is taking measures to crack down on property speculation as well as seeking to reduce inflation and food inflation in particular (the biggest driver of inflation in the country).

This leads him to conclude that although the Chinese economy is slowing down in the mid-term future it is likely that it will be soft gradual show down that will allow the economy to adequately adapt to the new pace of change.

You can read the article here: http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/roach9/English

Do Chinese extraction (mining, oil & gas) activities in Africa overlap with areas of conservation value?

In April 2011 I wrote a report for Conservation International (CI) on Chinese mining, oil and gas extraction operations in eleven African countries were CI has a significant presence and in the context of their geographical locations to biological diverse environments.  The report also looks at how CI could possibly catalyse a working relationship with important and responsible Chinese corporations with a view to help them mitigate any negative environmental impact their operations might have.  The good folks at Conservation International have allowed me to openly publish a report which can be down loaded and read here.

Read the report on Scribd: http://www.scribd.com/doc/63493026/Chinese-MOG-Operations-in-Africa-Conservation-International

BMF presentation notes

Many apologies for the lateness of this post.  I have been meaning to do a post on the presentation I gave to the Black Managerial Forum on the 19th August for a couple of days now.  Without further delay here it is, below you will find links to articles that I have published previously on this blog as well as the PPT I gave and the article that I wrote and Fahamu published that the PPT was based on.

• BMF Power Point Presentation
• The Chinese Economic Growth Miracle: Lessons for South Africa (pdf)
• Recommended reading list on the Chinese economy
• Recommended reading list on Chinese politics

China Media Project: Chinese media report flight of state assets

 This article by the China Media Project very briefly discusses an issue that has been a big concern in China for a long time now and one that China is often bringing up in its relations with the US and Canda.  I am of course talking about the problem of cronic government corruption that has led to at least 16,000 officals stealing an estimated US$123.6 billion since 1995. Disapearing with that money to other countries with which China does not have an extradition treaty.  To tell the truth I am not so sure if China has an extradition treaty with any country yet but it certainly does not have one with the Western countries that these officials flee to.

UK Parliamentary discussion: Rebalancing UK trade and investment with China

In this discussion by a UK parliamentary panel (HoC Business, Innovation and Skills Committee) looks at how how the UK can expand its business with China and be more competitive in the country.  It is rather long at just over two hours but it is worth watching.  Many subjects are covered in this discussion such as:

• A brief introduction into how China developed
• China's business culture
• Why Germany is so successful in the country
• The complex nature of who owns Chinese companies
• China's respect of IP 
• Many others

Some things that have come out in this discussion include:

• The need for cultural training and support for British business people hoping to do business in the country.
• The UK's major export industry, if you will, (finance) is not some thing that China is interested in yet but Germany's sophisticated manufacturing industry is some thing they are interested in.  
•  The need for financial and technical support by government for SMEs going into China.

Here is a quick introduction on the UK parliamentary home page:

Rebalancing the economy: trade and investment
Witnesses

1. Stephen Phillips, Chief Executive, China-Britain Business Council, Dr Kerry Brown, Head of Asia Programme, Chatham House, Professor Peter Nolan, Cambridge University
2. Paul Anderson, International Sales Director, JSR Genetics Ltd, Steve Young, Head of Business Development and Sales, Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd, Simon Carter, and Joan Turley

(TED) Angela Belcher: Using nature to grow batteries

Introduction from TED:

Inspired by an abalone shell, Angela Belcher programs viruses to make elegant nanoscale structures that humans can use. Selecting for high-performing genes through directed evolution, she's produced viruses that can construct powerful new batteries, clean hydrogen fuels and record-breaking solar cells. At TEDxCaltech, she shows us how it's done.

The presentation can be viewed on TED's website here: