Published on Mar 12, 2015
China’s Rise to Global Economic SUPERPOWER 2015 (Full Documentary)
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), the most prestigious international financial institution in the world, has rated China’s ranking to number one economic superpower in the world — surpassing those of the United States based upon the purchasing power parity of GDP indicator (gross domestic product). IMF has asserted that China produced 17% of the world gross domestic product (GDP) in 2014 exceeding U.SA’s GDP of world’s 16% (1). China’s economic growth performance over the last 30 years has impressed development economists who took the position that China will remain in the low/middle income group of nations permanently due to its very large population — approximately 1.2+ billion in 2015. Moreover, China’s performance has inspired other low and middle income countries to emulate China’s approach and engage in growthmanship including many middle income countries of Latin America such as Brazil, Argentina, Columbia and India which also has a large population like China.
It is most likely that China will maintain its lead in economic ranking of GDP in the foreseeable future largely due to catch-up of its per capita income which is rising annually at 8%-10%. (2) Although China’s GDP has converged and surpassed Untired States GDP, its per capita GDP is still below the U.S. and first world. However, China’s rapid GDP growth coupled with low fertility rate (number of children per women) will boost China’s per capita income to high marginal annual growth paving the way for its convergence, in less than two decades, to the level of high income countries as estimated by USC researchers (3). It follows that the GDP gap between China and other countries will further widen in the future. Moreover, the U.S. carries a heavy military burden which does not feedback to economic growth while China has avoided heavy military burden. Instead in 2014, China inaugurated a major international economic development program by financing infrastructure projects in the historical silk route countries. It is engaged in financing economic infrastructure projects in the silk route countries with positive ROI for China and the recipient countries. (4)
The genesis of China’s remarkable upswing in a relatively short span of time goes back more than five decades to 1948 when China emerged an independent state after World War II upon the defeat of Japan by the United States. China’s leadership was bifurcated between Chairman Mao Zedong’s communist party and Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang regime raising concern of a pending civil war. (5)
To China’s good fortune, the two leaders’ views coalesced and a coalition government was formed. The absence of a civil war and the peaceful political transition of leadership largely explains the remarkable ascent of China’s political and economic fortunes.
China’s political system is not monolithic, or colossal, it has worked under a seven-member Politburo Standing Committee of party congress. Political leadership is elected every five years.
The second major influence that explains China’s good fortune is its decision to open up to the free world and get out of the Soviet sphere of influence. It was prompted in the 1960s when President Richard M. Nixon sought reproachment with China and sent his Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to China who arranged a personal visit by President Nixon with China’s leadership. The approach turned out to be very successful. It got China out of the sphere of Soviet Union’s influence, paved the way for China to open up to the Western world, and the rest of the world, and eventually modify its system of political economy to a very unique system of private enterprise market economy and a one-party political system. This unique approach has turned out to be successful both politically and economically for China, and it has benefitted the rest of the world in trade, commerce and international peace. In 2014, President Barrack Obama initiated the exchange of 100,000 American students to study in China further cementing cultural and education relations between the two countries.
Following is a synopsis of China’s economic, political and social framework that augur well for its continued development and leadership, and provide a blueprint for other nations to emulate.
Global Climate Change
Environment Ethics
Environment Justice
Transition Studies 