Jason Douglas of The Wall Street Journal tells his readers that capital is pouring into factories that make items such as electric vehicles, batteries, and renewable energy in an effort to jolt Beijing’s ailing economy. He writes:
China is doubling down on manufacturing to reboot its economy after a turbulent year, a strategy that risks igniting new tensions over trade as countries step up support for prized industries and global growth teeters.
The push for new growth drivers comes as figures showed the world’s second-largest economy expanded in 2023 at its weakest rate in decades, aside from the three years when China was closed to the outside world during the Covid-19 pandemic. A drawn-out property crunch means Beijing can no longer rely on debt-fueled real-estate investment to power the economy, and officials have shown little appetite to shift activity decisively toward consumer spending. […]
It also means Western companies are set to face fiercer competition from Chinese firms in developing countries. While some countries, such as India, are themselves considering tighter restrictions on certain Chinese products to protect fledgling industries, others are likely to embrace them as affordable alternatives to Western high-tech goods.
“China is just going to swamp those markets and dominate everywhere else,” said Green.
Read more here.
