In the New York Times, Ross Terrill writes about the complexities of economic reform in China:
China’s advance toward global economic pre-eminence appears irresistible. Having recently surpassed Britain, France and Italy, its economy is now the fourth-largest in the world, growing, Beijing says, at the startling rate of 10 percent a year. Brokers in Hong Kong and New York entertain themselves by predicting the year in which China’s gross domestic product will outstrip that of the United States.
The speculation is understandable. China’s appetite for oil, gas and other natural resources from abroad is all but insatiable. Its urban middle class enjoys cellphones, poodles, H√§agen-Dazs, gated apartments, psychiatrists, overseas vacations and cars for which city streets have little room in a nation that is now 40 percent urban.
Yet the facade of China’s urban coastal economy hides problems that, sooner or later, are sure to put a damper on the celebration. [Full text]
