According to the IMF, China generated 28 per cent of total global savings in 2023. This is only a little less than the 33 per cent share of the US and EU combined. That is quite extraordinary. It also has several implications. One is that if China were an open market economy, its capital markets would be the biggest in the world. Another is that how these savings are managed is likely to be the most important single determinant of global interest rates and the global balance of payments.
FT refuting ‘China debt trap’ myth:
If China wants the mercantilist solution to excess savings it will have to fund smaller emerging and developing countries. It can pretend these are loans. But much of the money will be grants, after the fact. If it ends up funding renewable energy there, that could be good for the world. But, from China’s perspective, it would be a costly gift.
One is that if China were an open market economy, its capital markets would be the biggest in the world.
Damn, this is a sleazy little sneaky line right here.
“If China were more heavily exploited, those savings would be funneled directly into the profits of western corporations instead of just sitting in their bank accounts.”
