There are three things Americans should learn from China
The Impact of Covid Curbs on the Chinese Communist Party: How China Has Solved the Economic Miracle and How to Get Land in India
About four decades ago, Chinese Communist Party officials scoured the world for best practices, which they cautiously piloted to create the economic miracle that their country showcases today. These days, though, the Communist Party champions Chinese solutions, and not just for China but also for the rest of the world. China has begun to portray itself as an alternative to the West, thanks in part to the third term of head of country, Mr. Xiaonese, who embodies a far more confident China.
In early November, weeks before the peak holiday shopping season was about to kick off, Apple issued an unusual warning: customers would have to wait longer for the new iPhone 14 Pro models. The assembly facility in Zhengzhou was operating at a reduced capacity because of Covid curbs.
Apple, for example, has been suggesting that it will move production to India for some time now. India has a large labor force and many workers with the right skills, but Apple faces a lot more red tape in India than it does in China. Friedman pointed out how difficult it is to get land in India, while the Chinese Communist Party faces less obstacles for causes it deems important. In China, labor costs are artificially cheap because of political oppression against labor organizers, according to Friedman.
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Gad Allon, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School whose research focuses on operations and supply chain management, appeared to have an even more conservative assessment of the timetable. “I don’t think we can talk about any meaningful change beyond a few percent before 2025,” Allon said.
Friedman said that Apple is a Chinese company in some ways, just as it is an American company.
He said there are important factors that can’t be duplicated in other countries. This includes availability of materials and components from nearby suppliers; world-class infrastructure that is already in place at scale; access to a large labor force of engineers as well as low labor costs; and availability of the swaths of land necessary to build the factory-cities that can house hundreds of thousands of workers as well as the sprawling production facilities.
Steve Jobs, Apple’s late CEO, brought the labor issue up during an October 2010 meeting with President Obama. He said America’s education system was an obstacle for Apple when it needed 30,000 industrial engineers to support the on-site factory workers.
“You can’t find that many in America to hire,” Jobs told the president, according to his biographer, Walter Isaacson. If you could educate these engineers, we could move more manufacturing plants here.
BEIJING – China is targeting economic growth of “around 5%” this year, and will take steps to catalyze a rebound after stalling under the weight of strict COVID controls last year, according to the country’s outgoing premier, Li Keqiang.
The target is slightly lower than last year’s goal of “around 5.5%”, which was set before the Omicron variant of COVID-19 started to challenge the government’s “zero COVID” policy, leading to mass lockdowns, forced quarantines and a sharp drop-off in economic activity.
Official statistics show that the economy grew just 3% last year — among the slowest rates since market reforms began after Chairman Mao Zedong died in the late 1970s — although some economists suspect the growth rate may actually have been lower.
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“This year is important to prioritize economic stability and pursue progress while still ensuring stability.” At the opening of the country’s parliament, Li said policies should be tailored to create synergy for high quality development.
The meetings, involving about 3,000 delegates from across the country, are a chance to review the year’s achievements and preview upcoming legislative proposals, though delegates rarely cast dissenting votes.
China also announced on Sunday it would increase military spending this year by 7.2% from the year before, for a total of 1.55 trillion yuan ($220 billion). The U.S. will spend more than $700 billion in the next four years.
Wang Chao told reporters this weekend that the budget increase was moderate and reasonable, and that it was responding to the complex security challenges in the world.
Li suggests that China still views Taiwan as self-governed despite Beijing’s desire to “re-unify” with the island peacefully.
He said that the Party’s overall strategy for resolving the Taiwan issue must be implemented. Economic and cultural exchanges between the two sides of the strait are necessary.
The speech that Li delivered to the National People’s Congress focused on the economy and policy since 2013), but it was mostly focused on the economy.
Tech, education and other sectors of the economy have been hurt by the “zero carbon dioxide” policies of the government, and he thinks the government should make a greater effort to deepen reform and opening and boost market confidence.
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The authority of Li has been weakened by the changes in leadership of the Chinese economy, say analysts. When parliament chooses a new premier, Li is going to retire.
It is expected that Li Ying, a former leader of the Communist Party in the coastal provinces and a close ally of the Chinese president, will get the job because it is part of his efforts to consolidate his hold on power as he prepares for a third term as state president. (The two Lis are not related.)
Lowering China’s reliance on investment is a priority of Li Kejiang’s, which was repeated in his speech on Sunday.
China’s new premier, Li Qiang, has offered a hearty welcome to foreign companies in an effort to arrest a slump in business confidence that has exacerbated the country’s economic woes.
Li, who was formally appointed earlier this month, met a group of global CEOs on the sidelines of the China Development Forum in Beijing on Monday, including Apple’s Tim Cook.
He said that China would expand its opening up to the outside world regardless of the current international situation. “China’s economy has been deeply integrated into the global division of labor.”
The country will align with international economic and trade rules and give equal treatment to foreign investment by eliminating government controls, according to Li.
The forum, which was held from Saturday to Monday, had participants like the Samsung Chairman, Pfizer’s Albert Bourla, and the Alliance Group CEO Oliver Bte.
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Cook spoke at a panel discussion on Saturday, saying he was happy to be back as the company celebrated its 30th year in the country, according to state media. This is the first trip he has taken in a long time.
But the problems have been exacerbated by the Communist Party’s erratic and draconian zero-Covid policy, which ended late last year, and a sweeping crackdown on private business.
The measures have resulted in a fall in investment and rise in unemployment. The youth’s unemployment rate hit more than 18% last month.
Foxconn, Apple’s biggest contractor, said last month it had secured a new site in Vietnam to expand production in the Southeast Asian country, according to the company.
In its annual survey, the American Chamber of Commerce in China found that fewer than half of their members view China as a top investment destination.
Wang held a dozen personal meetings with senior company officials, including the CEOs or chairs from Swire Group, Qualcomm, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Nestlé, according to the ministry.
The ministry is going to launch an “Invest in China Year” in 2023 to encourage foreign companies to set up shop.