China Economic Quarterly

China Economic Quarterly

March 2016

Avoiding The Japan Trap

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Growth is slowing, debt is rising, and the government is beginning openly to talk about “zombie companies” in several key industries. This is today’s China, but it also carries echoes of early 1990s Japan. The resemblance is more than superficial: at root the problem is how to manage a transition from a state-directed to a market-oriented economy. CEQ examines the similarities and differences between China and Japan, and handicaps China’s chances of skirting the pitfall of low-growth, high-debt stagnation.

Also in this issue:

  • Charles Horne and Xinling Wang detail the rise and fall of CSRC chairman Xiao Gang and what it tells us about China’s stock market mess
  • Tom Miller reviews China's Strong Arm, which documents Beijing’s increasing efforts to protect its assets abroad
Tomas Wiik2014-17