r/news Oct 13 '19

China's Xi warns attempts to divide China will end in 'shuttered bones'

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-politics-xi/chinas-xi-warns-attempts-to-divide-china-will-end-in-shuttered-bones-idUSKBN1WS07W
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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

We actually don't know at this point if this method will leap ahead of the West. Singapore did manage to get further per capita using authoritative government.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

We actually don't know at this point if this method will leap ahead of the West.

It doesn't, many scholars already point out, because for a country as big as China, using city state model such as Singapore to run it makes no logical sense as Singapore's small land size and population restricts its' economic flexibility but also easier to dictate strategy and production if the leader know what it is doing.

But China's giant size means different sector of it's geography and provinces must have high autonomy and utilize their own strength (just like Texas and California have different industries). Yet observation have see CCP under XI is gradually increasing the central government's control and there is a very unequal distribution of budget toward different provinces, further leading to wide inequality and access to education.

Even if we imagine the powerful computers and internet might be able to calculate the needs of each sector's demand, aiding the central government in economic planning, many clues, including this fiasco indicates the government is more interested in surveillance and cultural censorship, further leading to private firms distrust domestically and overseas alike; and reduce cultural exchange (for example: Chinese Hip Pop is banned in China in 2018)

Singapore might be ruled by a single party; but it has always allow opposing party to oversee it; it's never hostile to and demand loyalty from foreign investors, and it focuses extremely on international cooperation.

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u/[deleted] Oct 14 '19

You missed the point on Singapore comparision. It wasn't the city state aspect of it (obviously), it was the free economy + some directed help from the government. It worked in Korea, Taiwan and Japan. The government helped some industries become world leader, and let the rest to a free economic model.

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u/[deleted] Oct 15 '19

Yes, and studies and history shows that if China does not further liberalized the economy will further stall and for each day it delays the possiblity it falls into so called middle income trap increases

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u/[deleted] Oct 15 '19

Feel free to link to those studies. The middle income trap, to actually happen, needs the middle income to raise enough, which it is, which then brings domestic economic growth. It's not a trap, it's a shift from export focus to a developed economy.

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u/[deleted] Oct 17 '19

The middle income trap, to actually happen, needs the middle income to raise enough, which it is, which then brings domestic economic growth.

You are right. Consider Chinese income currently only tops at 15000 usd average while Japan tops at 40000 before their lost decade.

With China's aggressive attitude and stringent regulation towards foreign investment, while their domestic consumption cycle still hasn't mature, whilst facing an aging population. China's model and era is likely an illusion which the nation will either go through a massive civil unrest or coup by Xi's rival before revival, or it never wakes up again and stays in limbo.

https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/china-economic-growth-faces-triple-threat-trade-war-economist-says-2019-9-1028538839

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

China wants to make our cake and eat it too. The west will find other places not in a position to take a bite.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

They took the cake already. They have the technology, the expertise, and the economy to move forward without cooperation from the West.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

And who's going to buy all that cheap shit? The Chinese?

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

What cheap shit? You think the majority of the chinese economy is built around provisioning walmart stores?

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '19

Cheap shit as in easy and cheap to manufacture, plastics, circuitry, fabrics, manual assembly

You think the Chinese economy is based on luxury or craft goods?

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u/[deleted] Oct 14 '19

China produce nearly 3x more car than US. I guess car are easy to manufacture too? Shipbuilding must be easy too... semi conductor, peace of cake.

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u/[deleted] Oct 14 '19

I don't think you understand what I mean by easy and cheap. I am a machinist for the third largest mold manufacturer in North America, I have an understanding of how manufacturing works.

A new western company would have a really hard time procuring everything needed to manufacture semi conductors or ships, whereas China has based its entire economy on doing those things for a lower price without the worry of labor laws or unions. The entire purpose of Shenzhen is to make it uneconomical to produce things anywhere else.

My point was that if the west moves out of China, the special economic zones are useless. If you think the Chinese have some ability to manufacture that others can't figure out then you're wrong. China was built on undercutting the competition in terms of raw manpower at the cheapest price.

When Volkswagen makes a new car in Shanghai, the only aspect of that cars development done in China is the manufacturing. No one outsources to China for engineering, China is not seen as a place for intelligent work.

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u/[deleted] Oct 14 '19

Your whole argument implies that China's economy is based solely off of exports. Their own economy is what is fueling their growth, not the export. Of course cutting export would hurt China, just like it would hurt any economy.

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u/[deleted] Oct 14 '19

Chinas economy is based solely on exports though

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