The World of 2025
Thomas Fingar, the chair of the National Intelligence Council, spoke to the Atlantic Council last night on the release of "Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World." He and his team project nearly two decades into the future in order to "stimulate strategic thinking" among U.S. policymakers during this period of transition between presidential administrations. This undertaking is useful, as Council ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on November 21, 2008 08:31
Now That’s a Stimulus Package (Updated)
Concerned about future growth the Chinese government is about to implement a stimulus package: SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- China unveiled on Sunday what it described as a "massive" economic stimulus package worth over half a trillion dollars in an effort to reverse slowing economic growth in the world's most populous country. China's state-run news agency Xinhua said Sunday that the ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on November 9, 2008 13:14
Economy Slowing
Real estate construction projects are being cancelled. Consumer confidence is waning. Auto sales are tanking. There are worries about rising unemployment. The government is considering a major stimulus package. In China: Just as China attained supercharged growth that astounded much of the world, it appears to be slowing more sharply and more quickly than anyone anticipated. “It’s ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on November 7, 2008 15:45
Which Came First?
The melamine or the egg? There's been a development in the seemingly endless saga of food contaminated by melamine in China that I found interesting: HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- Health authorities in Hong Kong have found more eggs contaminated with the chemical melamine. The chemical is at the center of a tainted milk scandal that has sickened more than ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 29, 2008 09:46
China As Economic Engine
This morning the New York Times has an editorial that gets on a bandwagon I've been on for some time, urging China's leaders to cultivate an internal market, to consume more: Over the last 30 years, China has hitched its economy to the industrial world, exporting cheap goods to the United States and other developed nations, building up an enormous trade ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 27, 2008 08:17
Caveat Emptor
In his column today cautioning us against adulterated Chinese foodstuffs David Lazarus hasn't taken his line of reasoning far enough and draws an unnecessarily Sinophobic conclusion: On Tuesday, the Chinese government ordered all liquid and powdered milk manufactured before Sept. 14 to be removed from store shelves for testing. At issue is the chemical melamine, which apparently was added to dairy ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 15, 2008 10:33
America’s Demise Greatly Exaggerated
Over at New Atlanticist, I have a new post up entitled, "America's Coming Decline?" Contra Arnaud de Borchgrave, Thomas Friedman, and others, I argue that it is highly unlikely that China, Europe, or anyone else overtakes the United States as the major economic player in the world. The bottom line is that the current financial "crisis" is almost certainly a short term ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 7, 2008 14:46
Fact-Checking Zakaria
When I read this transcript from Fareed Zakaria this bit leapt out at me: The Chinese are by far the largest holders of American debt, for example. They buy billions of dollars' worth of American Treasury bills every week. Now perhaps Mr. Zakaria is engaging in a masterful piece of misdirection by conflating “debt” with “American Treasury bills” but, assuming he means ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on September 29, 2008 11:03
Chinese Banks To Stop Loaning to U.S. Banks? (Updated)
The South China Morning Post is reporting that the China Banking Regulatory Commission has instructed Chinese banks to stop loaning money to U.S. banks.Chinese regulators have told domestic banks to stop interbank lending to U.S. financial institutions to prevent possible losses during the financial crisis, the South China Morning Post reported on Thursday. The Hong Kong newspaper cited unidentified industry sources ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on September 25, 2008 16:11
EU Bans Baby Food With Chinese Milk
The European Union of 27 nations has announced a ban on the importation of baby food containing Chinese milk: BEIJING - The European Union banned imports of baby food containing Chinese milk on Thursday as tainted dairy products linked to the deaths of four babies turned up in candy and other Chinese-made goods that were quickly pulled from stores worldwide The 27-nation ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on September 25, 2008 11:37
