China Versus the West: The Global Power Shift of the 21st Century

China Versus the West: The Global Power Shift of the 21st Century

by Ivan Tselichtchev, Yang Yongxin, Frank-Jürgen Richter
Released March 2012
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9780470829721

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Book description

China Versus the West is an innovative book.

The author, a leading specialist on the international and Asian economy and business, presents the most comprehensive picture of the changing power balance between the emerging superpower China and the "old" developed economies of the West: mainly the US, Europe and Japan. The reader can clearly see in what areas and to what extent China has become the world leader, in what areas it is catching up and in what areas the West retains its superiority and has a chance to strengthen it further.

At the same time, I. Tselichtchev unveils a breath-taking story of the global economy and business in the brave new world which is non-"West-led" and where major growth dynamics are coming from large emerging economies. A radically changing economic environment requires new government policies and business strategies. The book contains many valuable suggestions and ideas. Using his own analytical framework, the author presents a set of options and alternatives for Western businesses in the wake of China's production and export offensive.

The book provides a uniquely sharp and thought-provoking analysis of the factors behind the global crisis of 2008-2009, largely different from what we see in other publications, and examines its implications for the global power balance. I. Tselichtchev vividly shows that it was not global, but Western crisis of a structural character which drastically changed the China-West power balance in the former's favor. He provides strong arguments showing that today's China is structurally and macro-economically stronger than most countries of the West. This leads him to rethinking the very essence of the Chinese model of capitalism and to its new definition. He expresses unconventional, sometimes controversial, but well-founded views about China's problems and weaknesses and the prospects for its political evolution.

The book ends with invaluable insights into China's unique role in the world economic history, the essence of the non-"West-led" multipolar world and the positions of its major players. Arguing that from now on no single country will be ever able to "rule the world", it shows new opportunities dynamic China is opening for the West.

Thoroughly analyzing and discussing a wide range of the key, often complicated issues which are now in the focus of the world's attention, the book remains very reader-friendly. It is written in the form of an unconstrained dialogue with the reader, containing a lot of the author's on-the-spot impressions, interesting facts, remarks and quotations.

China Versus the West is a must reading for everyone who wants to know more about the global developments, China and the West, and also, perhaps, to get valuable inputs and hints to find his or her own place in today's new world. It is highly recommended for policy-makers, business people, academics, analysts and journalists. It is a valuable source for professors and students of the universities and business schools.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Contents
  3. Title
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. Foreword by Yang Yongxin
  7. Preface
  8. Acknowledgments
  9. Introduction by Frank-Jürgen Richter
  10. Part One: China as the World’s Leading Producing, Exporting, and Financial Power: To What Extent, Where, and Why?
    1. Chapter 1: GDP: Toward the U.S.-China Duopoly
      1. Notes
    2. Chapter 2: Manufacturing Output: China Is Already the Number One
      1. Note
    3. Chapter 3: Merchandise Exports: From China’s Lead to China’s Dominance?
    4. Chapter 4: Where China Is Leading and Where It Is Not
      1. Group One Industries: China Is the Top Producer and the Top Exporter
      2. Group Two Industries: China Is the Top Producer, but Not the Top Exporter
      3. Group Three Industries: China Is Neither the Top Producer Nor a Major Exporter
      4. Key Features of China’s Manufacturing Lead
      5. Anatomy of China’s Merchandise Trade Surplus
      6. Net Exporter and Net Importer Sectors
      7. Domestic Private Companies Have Become the Major Surplus Creators
      8. Note
    5. Chapter 5: Chinese Domestic Manufacturers versus Western Manufacturers
      1. The Four Segments Analytical Framework
      2. Chinese Manufacturers’ Global Offensive: Four Stages
      3. Western Manufacturers: A New Way of Thinking Is Required
      4. Option One: Stay at Home and Differentiate the Product
      5. Option Two: Move to China
      6. Western Governments Have to Initiate an Export Counteroffensive
    6. Chapter 6: A Big Battle for the Chinese Market
      1. China-Bound Exports of Capital Goods: East Asia Is Leading
      2. China-Bound Exports of Consumer Goods: Opportunities Are There, but You Have to Work Hard Not to Miss Them
      3. China Trap
      4. At-Home Chinese Companies Are Active in the High-End Niche
      5. Competition with Domestic Capital Goods Makers Is Getting Really Tough
    7. Chapter 7: Global Services Market: The West’s Edge and China as Number Five
      1. China Joins the Ranks of Leading Services Exporters, but the United States Is Far Ahead
      2. China’s Trade Deficit
      3. China Has a Structural Weakness in Services That Is Difficult to Overcome
      4. The U.S. and EU Surpluses in the Services Trade with China Are Meager
      5. The Right Time to Capture the Chinese Market
      6. Note
    8. Chapter 8: Is China a New Financial Superpower?
      1. China’s Overseas Assets
      2. $3 Trillion-Plus Foreign Reserves: Implications for China and for the West
      3. China Has Become the Largest International Lender for Developing Countries
      4. China’s Outbound Foreign Investment: Accelerating, but the Lag Remains
      5. Chinese Households’ Financial Assets: Still Tiny
      6. Is China a New Financial Superpower? Yes and No
      7. Conclusions
  11. Part Two: The Global Downturn and Beyond: Western Capitalism and Chinese Capitalism
    1. Chapter 9: The Global Crisis Was Not Really Global
    2. Chapter 10: Western Crisis: Three Major Factors
      1. Unaffordable Consumption and Households Deeper in Debt
      2. Gambling Capitalism
      3. The Failure of State Regulation, Corporate Governance, and Business Morality
    3. Chapter 11: Still, Western Capitalism Is Alive, But. . . .
      1. Calm Down: No End of Capitalism
      2. Soaring Public Debts as the Biggest Crocodile
      3. The Welfare State Has to Be Trimmed More and Faster
    4. Chapter 12: Is China Structurally Stronger Than the West?
      1. Improvement of Lending Practices and Persistent Fight with Overheating
      2. Enhancing Regulatory Standards for Banks
      3. Healthy Public Finance
    5. Chapter 13: The Chinese Model of Capitalism
      1. The Need for a New Conceptual Framework
      2. The Chinese System Is Not State Capitalism: A Great Shift to Private Property
      3. Creating Market-Style State-Owned Companies
      4. Fierce Competition and the Culture of Self-Responsibility
      5. Chinese Capitalism: Definition
      6. A Digression about China’s Structural Weaknesses and Political Evolution
    6. Chapter 14: Global Rebalancing Will Not Be Easy
      1. Can the Idea Work?
      2. Private Consumption in China Is Already Growing Fast
      3. Yet Expansion of China’s Domestic Demand Is One Thing, and Rebalancing Is Another
      4. Too Rapid Increase of China’s Consumption May Have Dire Side Effects
      5. Present Position: Imbalance or Equilibrium?
      6. Conclusions
  12. Part Three: The China-West Economic Wars: And the Winner is. . . .
    1. Chapter 15: China’s Choice Is to Further Expand Trade Surpluses and Keep the Yuan Weak
      1. The Rationale for Not Appreciating the Yuan Faster
      2. The Rationale for Increasing Savings and Exports Rather than Consumption
    2. Chapter 16: Environment: China Going Its Own Way
      1. Global Climate Talks: Doubts Remain If Not Increase
      2. Concern about the Impact on Growth
      3. A Wider Angle Is Needed
      4. China’s Pro-Environmental Drive
      5. China-West Environmental Cooperation
      6. China As a New World Leader in Green Business?
    3. Chapter 17: A Fight for Natural Resources: China Sets New Rules of the Game
      1. Changes in the Global Markets
      2. Chinese Model of Tapping Resources
      3. African Saga
      4. He Acts While Other Men Just Talk
      5. China Has Become a Major Source of Development Aid
    4. Chapter 18: Indigenous Innovation: Seeking to Command Advanced Technologies by All Means
      1. The West is Creating China as a New Technological Superpower
      2. Soaring Foreign Investment in R&D Centers and Production Upgrading
      3. China’s Technological Strategy
      4. Technology Transfer Enforcement
    5. Chapter 19: Company Acquisitions: Chinese Are More Active than Westerners
      1. Acquisitions Asymmetry
      2. The Chinese Government Is Tightening Regulations
      3. Western Governments Are Blocking Chinese Acquisitions of Technology and Resource Firms
      4. Chinese Acquirers Are Backed by the State
  13. Conclusion: The West Needs a Cohesive China Policy and Unconventional Responses to China-Posed Challenges
  14. Epilogue: China, the West, and the World
  15. References
  16. About the Author
  17. Index

Product information

  • Title: China Versus the West: The Global Power Shift of the 21st Century
  • Author(s): Ivan Tselichtchev, Yang Yongxin, Frank-Jürgen Richter
  • Release date: March 2012
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9780470829721