12-18-2008, 07:32 PM
Just a few general comments on China, since I happen to be in Shanghai at the moment (where Christmas shopping at the Walmart's, and elsewhere, is in full swing, and where I bought my very own Chinese WoW mouse, not that I play it anymore---unfortunately they only had DII action figures and no Diablo mice, if such things exist anyway).
Of course China is manipulating the Yuan to its own advantage, but economics isn't about fairness, it's about capability; and since China holds about 2 trillion dollars in US foreign currency reserves (while the US, with a little assistance from Dubya, throws away a trillion here and a trillion there) it has a lot of capability.
People are surprisingly unconcerned here about the global financial crisis. They figure that the domestic Chinese market, which has a huge amount of room left, can pick up the slack (8% planned growth instead of 10%) while the US runs through what might be a deep recession. Shanghai is far from typical, but people in China are really cheerful and optimistic about the future. With a large number of well-educated young people, an almost endless supply of dirt-cheap labor, new buildings, trains, factories, computer and internet technology, and eveything else, China is on a rapidly upward trajectory, while the West is going down --- or, at best, holding somewhat level.
The US won't go away, but China is a mindboggling explosive place right now.
Of course China is manipulating the Yuan to its own advantage, but economics isn't about fairness, it's about capability; and since China holds about 2 trillion dollars in US foreign currency reserves (while the US, with a little assistance from Dubya, throws away a trillion here and a trillion there) it has a lot of capability.
People are surprisingly unconcerned here about the global financial crisis. They figure that the domestic Chinese market, which has a huge amount of room left, can pick up the slack (8% planned growth instead of 10%) while the US runs through what might be a deep recession. Shanghai is far from typical, but people in China are really cheerful and optimistic about the future. With a large number of well-educated young people, an almost endless supply of dirt-cheap labor, new buildings, trains, factories, computer and internet technology, and eveything else, China is on a rapidly upward trajectory, while the West is going down --- or, at best, holding somewhat level.
The US won't go away, but China is a mindboggling explosive place right now.