Tech for Global, Globalization Footprints of the Established and the New

How deep is China bonded with you?

By Yingwei Fu May 29, 2020 08:30 pm

Image credit: Shutterstock

The nationwide quarantine caused by COVID-19 was swiftly executed in China in spring 2020. The economy entered a hibernation period: machines in factories stopped running, stores closed, people kept social distance – these scenes will forever recall the beginning of 2020.

A butterfly is now starting to test its wings in China, and the world can feel the wind, or even the tornado, that is coming. Named for much of the past half century ‘The World’s Factory,’ China has bonded with other economic bodies profoundly and widely through the years, from trade activities to cultural communications.

Nevertheless, how deep is China bonded with your country and with others?

Take a must-have item in this pandemic period – the face mask. Medical face masks were in severe shortage recently due to the outbreak: pharmacies were out of stock and countries even banned exporting masks. Producing nearly 50% of the world’s face masks yearly, China itself has and is experiencing scarcity issues as well. The demand for masks is booming, but we cannot expect that the growth of the industry will catch up with the disease.

There are far, far more goods and services than masks produced or provided by China. Back in 2001, the year that China joined the World Trade Organization, the country contributed only 4% to the global GDP. Global GDP increased to USD 85.91 trillion in 2018 and China’s GDP increased ten times to USD 13.61 trillion, accounting for approximately 16% of the world’s GDP. From 4% to 16%, the change highlights China’s development and implies the country’s increasing global engagement.

For the last while, adventurers and entrepreneurs have been seeking their chances, within China’s borders and in stimulated markets worldwide, drawn by the heat generated by that engagement. Historical memory about communications with the world outside China tend to be traced back to the thousands-of-years-old Silk Road. As time has flown, communications have gone beyond simple trade activities and have brought all parties into a global community – it is a story of increasing symbiosis, with the ‘Silk Road’ now everywhere, a digitally woven norm shaping economic themes all across the planet.

China is still welcoming inbound global partners and encouraging domestic enterprises to explore overseas opportunities. Policies, including financial market reforms and Belt and Road Initiatives, are still at the center of gravity of this more open-minded China. Chinese companies are at the forefront, supporting the symbiotic vision and their own ambitions.

This is just the beginning of the story. We believe all the major roads lead to the ‘Rome’ of a repaired and once-again-booming economy – but none is flat and smooth. Trade friction, unilateral protectionism and natural disasters are shifting the ground for Chinese enterprises and companies all over the map. Along the way, there will be many unique perspectives to guide ambitious actors. And the need for good advice will be most acute.

In this report, we will discuss the landscape of Chinese A-shares overseas growth, sectors like e-commerce and fintech with extraordinary performance, and global expansions of other millennium companies.

Editor: Luke Sheehan