[azza-bazoo]

Agreed. These are the same Chinese authorities that refuse to publish key economic statistics, or blatantly make them up. They also have trouble keeping track of government debt -- just this week there were reports about regional government loans that have been kept hidden. And then there's the housing bubble developing in the major cities because it's been so easy to get private loans the last two years.

Chinese officials can do many things, but they aren't magicians, and won't be fixing anything overnight.

[stretchwithme]

Seems like what they say about China echos what they used to say about Japan 20-25 years ago. And Japan kept on rising happily forever after.

[azza-bazoo]

Um, no. Japan's economy has been stagnant for close to twenty years now. China's economy has plenty of growth left in it.

Although you're right that much of the scared-of-China crowd are just people who've transplanted their fears away from Japan.

[TheSkeptic]

I think you missed the poster's obvious sarcasm.

As for "China's economy has plenty of growth left in it": the issue is not the amount of growth, but the source and quality of the growth.

[azza-bazoo]

Sure, 'twas obvious sarcasm, my bad. But there are good reasons for China's economy to grow sustainably for some time yet (emerging middle class, manufacturing going more high-tech, etc). They have major structural problems too, but it's not all doom-and-gloom like Japan is/was.

[stretchwithme]

Of course there are good reasons for it to grow. Hopefully, the unwise choices driving the property bubble won't squelch it.

But the bubble will pop.

[stretchwithme]

Yeah, you need to get a little better at detecting sarcasm.