Customer Reviews

China: The Balance Sheet: What the World Needs to Know About the Emerging Superpower (Institute International Econom)

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This book is the best primer on the rise of China and the consequences to the United States that I have come across. Most other authors on the subject feel the need to have a strong thesis, either "China: House of Cards" or "China: Unstoppable Juggernaut". The team here presents a balanced and clinical view while venturing to conclusions on reccommended US actions as well. Well worth the quick read to cut through all the China hype/noise out there.

This is the best book on China in many a year. There have been quite a number of books published lately on how China is going to be the superpower of this century. Most of these speak of the business environment only. You will get advice from them on manufacturing in China, how China will take over the world. They look at how much we are buying from China, etc.

This book is by the Center for Strategic Studies and the Institute for International Economics. These guys know what they are talking about.

For instance, one of the major imports from China is PC's, both desktop and notebook. We purchase billions of dollars worth of PC's from China. On the surface this says that China is making tons of money. BUT, most of the content in the PC is not Chinese. The CPU is probably Intel (made in Malaysia). The Memory is probably Korean. The flat panel display is Japan or Korea. The hard drive is from Indonesia. The common thing in motherboards is to do the technical part of the work in Taiwan and the had inserted part in China. China produced the case and powersupply.

Another aspect of China, not usually considered in the business books is the political situation. We all know of Tiananmen Square. But this book says in the first half of 2005 there were 341 large-scale, organized mass incidents - 17 of which involved more than 10,000 protestors - during which 1,740 people were injured and 102 people killed. And between January and October 2005, 1,826 police were injured and 23 killed in mass incidents. China does not have a popular government.

Remember that China had two revolutions in the last century -- 1911 and when the communists took over. What are the chances of another? Revolutions do not make for good business conditions.

China also has a Muslim problem. China's most western province Sinkiang has borders with Pakistan, Afghanistan, and a few other 'stans. Sinkiang has 23,000 Mosques.

And then there is energy. China has very little oil, and the demand for automobiles and gasoline is rapidly growing. I find that I could go on for a long time, but that would be just repeating what the book says. If you are making any guesses about what the future holds for the world, or if it is just your interest, this book is mandatory.

I am the Chief Representive of a leading European Bank in China and I strongly recommand this book for everyone doing business in China or who has interest in this fascinating country.

There are so many books on China on the market these days - some of them good, most of them just average. However, this book provides you with great insight in regard to the major issues on China's development in the recent years and its impact on the future.

A must for everyone who deals with China these days!

I haven't read this book but have read several others by Nick Lardy and studied with him at Yale. I disagee with several reviewers who characterize Nick and his colleagues as ignorant about China and are simply imposing a western view. Nick was studying China and the economy (in Chinese) long before it was a popular subject and is intimately familiar with the country's economy. In a country where data is often obscured by politics, he has done an excellent job of piecing together disparate facts to achieve a coherent whole. He may be skeptical, but he's often correct.

This book is indispensable for anyone seeking solid information about China. No country has inspired more commentary, conflict and controversy, or given rise to more disparate and confusing predictions, projections and polemics. The authors - C. Fred Bergsten, Bates Gill, Nicholas R. Lardy and Derek Mitchell - focus on economic, political and security issues, carefully assessing the range of noteworthy opinions on each issue, and offering readers the data necessary to evaluate them. The authors do not attempt to make a case one way or the other. They provide an excellent, concise survey of contemporary thinking about China, with ample evidence for and against each viewpoint. We think that if you are only going to read one book on China, this should be it. If you are going to read several, start here.

This book contains an excellent ,overall assessment of China.It shows both the strengths and weaknesses of China.However,it is not the case that China's growth rate over the last 30 yaers has been 10 %.In late 2007,the World Bank,based on a complete reassessment of its estimates of Chinese price equivalents ,in terms of USA prices,based on standard purchasing power parity calculations,estimated China's Gross Domestic Product(gdp) to be no more than $6 trillion and not the $10-$11 trillion estimated in 2005 and 2006.This corrected statistic can be compared to the current gdp of the United States ,which is around $13 trillion.Similarly,the alleged rising middle class of China turns out to be at most 100 million out of a population of 1.4 billion.These facts mean that China is not the unstoppable powerhouse claimed in numerous other currently available books on China.The China threat,in fact,appears to be very similar ,in many respects, to the old Soviet Union threat based on faulty economic growth statistics that had greatly overestimated the Soviet Union's economic growth rate.

I believe that this books does not make a sound appreciation of the interesting development china has followed since the period of Den Xiaoping which ended in a new economic and political plan after 1978. If the plan has succeded, is a consequence of the opening of china to a new form of capitalism.The authors of the book seem to be making a biased judgement based upon facts that can also be applied to the U.S government in its intervention all around the third world.

I find this book extremely dull because it is mainly made up of statements. But then I realise that, written by government think tanks, this book is for politicians.

If you are a general reader and want to understand how China is affecting the world, I recommend China Shakes the World or China Inc. And if are interested in the recent history of China (pre-1978), read Wild Swans.

If you are a business person and want to understand how to do business in China, I recommend The China Executive by Dr Wei Wang.

Pg. 4: "China's average wage is one-thirtieth of the U.S. and its average productivity level is equally lower (and wages, in any event account for only 20% of the cost of producing textiles and 5% of the cost of producing semiconductors)." If so, manufacturers that offshore in China would be stupid; alternatively, "China: The Balance Sheet" has a serious credibility problem. I go with the latter.

Nonetheless, this is still some value to the book for its statistics. For example, the authors believe China's foreign exchange reserves reached $1 trillion in '06, far more than any other country's, and probably more than enough to make serious improvement in its pollution and poverty problems. By 2050, China's economy is projected to be the world's largest; foreign investment only accounts for 5% of its capital growth - the Chinese savings rate of about 33% is more than enough to handle China's growth with money left over.

As for social services, "The Balance Sheet" asserts a mid-90's adult literacy rate of about 80% (vs. 50% in India) and graduates 800,000 scientists and engineers/year, while spending only 2.8% of GDP on education. Healthcare accounts for about 6% - far less than the U.S.' 16%.

Only 16% of China's land is arable, and most of its population lives on it. China's leaders are pressured to improve employment to absorb those leaving rural China, as well as those 40% released from state-jobs (including 80% from state-owned manufacturers).

Bergsten et al are most concerned about the possibility of conflict between the U.S. and China re Taiwan, and they point out that China uses its political (U.N. Security Council membership) and economic muscle to "encourage" others to support it re Taiwan.

Well, what can I say about this book? With a due respect to the authors, it's the same usual American bias toward developing countries. As an American living and working in China for the past 2 years:

1)It's hard for Americans/Westerners to understand how business is done in China? Well, my answer it's because China is NOT in the West and Chinese people are not westerners. Try learning the language first, be respectful, and don't be so obnoxious.
2)This is the same background noise that I hear from overeducated ideologues: If a country is not like the US, then it must be wrong. I guess the Chinese should have a 4th world healthcare system like the US?
3)I personally feel that some authors wish China to stay poor so Madonna can have a concert there and pretend that the rich countries care. Well, maybe Africa, but not China.
4)Just because you watch CNN, FOX, and NBC, it does not make you an expert.
5)Just because you went to an Ivy League school, it does not make you a genius about other countries and cultures. As matter of fact, it does not make you a genius (period)
6)US should comment less on China and worry about the pointless war in Iraq, the death of our soldiers for a pointless cause, broken US healthcare, outsourcing of the American jobs, broken borders, broken education system, children killing each other at schools...and the list goes on.
7)China has many societal problems; please tell me something I don't know. China is working on it, it takes time, and they are not magicians.
8)If China is so awful please don't do business there nor go visit there. For the fact that there are SO many foreign investments there, makes all business executives and companies from the West idiots.