China GlobalisationChina GlobalisationIntroduction – International ConvergenceWe often hear that the world is getting smaller this doesnt mean the world is literally becoming smaller but the interactions between nations is greatly increasing due to GLOBALISATION. This is the process interaction among nations around the world in order to develop the global economy and it also refers to the integration of economies and societies all over the world. China is one of the few countries that have been able to take advantage of globalisation which has made China what it is now!
Economic growthChina is a dominant player in the global economy standing as the 3rd largest economy in the world after the USA and Japan as result of sustained economic growth averaging over 10% GDP per annum throughout the last thirty years. This is incredible considering Chinas standing as the 49th largest economy in 1975. Remarkably, China as the fastest growing economy in the world over the last three decades with a population of 1.3 billion and the 3rd largest geographical space of any country has the potential to become the most dominant player in the global economy. Refer to Appendix A & B.
China is being called a “phenomenal economy” because it has preserved an 8% growth rate of its GDP while the rest of the world sinks into a recession and its ability to survive and significantly assist the entire global economy against the calamities of the worst global economic crisis, since the great depression, in 2008 which is an example of Chinas economic strength and power.
China adopting globalisation, the process of on-going development and deepening of world markets in capital, goods and services through increasing commercial exchanges across national boundaries, has been the channel for much of this economic success.
As such the process of globalisation has had a profoundly positive impact on China that has extended beyond economic growth into important areas such as economic development. For example, over 400 million people have been lifted out of poverty since china embraced globalisation with its “open door” policy in 1980.
Economic Development & Quality Of LifeChinas economic development and quality of life has made rapid progress which has resulted in substantial increases in HDI. Today, China ranks as the 81st nation in terms of Human Development Index (HDI) which currently is .777, moving over 20 places since the early 1980s. In 2009 Chinas trade surplus was about US$200 billion, having a surplus allowed to the Chinese government to spend on HDI factors such as education, technology and health. There are numerous reasons that Chinas HDI has increased considerably, an example may include the opening up of TNCs that gives the Chinese people additional wealth which allows them to increasing in leisure spending, hence improving their quality of life and living standards.
This improvement in both HDI and quality of life is owed to the process of globalisation. Thanks to this process China is on its way to become a developed economy and has aimed of achieving a rank of 50th in HDI by 2020.
Environment Consequences & Income DistributionAdmittedly the economic story of China, influenced by globalisation has been predominately positive. The growth of the industrial sector in the Chinese economy has come at a cost and with it have arisen a series of negative outcomes especially in the areas of environmental degradation and income inequality. Today, China has 16 out of the worlds 20 most polluted cities and pollution alone costs China over $US200 million each year. Also air pollution is a major cause of death in Chinese on average 750,000 people die prematurely due to respiratory issues. This also leads to acid rain on over 30% of Chinas territory. Refer to Appendix C & D.
Cheap labour & lands-?? foreign investment–? Economic development and growth–? ?pollutionsThe increasing difference of income distribution between Chinas industrialised areas compared to its rural areas but this is all on the change. An industry worker gets about $90US per month whilst it takes a framer about 6 months to earn that. In recent years TNCs have looked to open factories in rural areas where its cheaper to maintain factories and employ people. This has transformed farming villages into manufacturing powerhouses which brought higher wages to rural areas. Thus causing private consumption to increase, which is a bonus to the Chinese economy, as rural areas makes up 60% of the population. An increase in income has also caused the overall life expectancy rate to increase to 72.5 years. Refer to Appendix
1.
2. Economic growth. This is the first factor and is the reason why TNCs spend more time working. This is because, as the growth rate does not increase with the population size (as a proportion of GDP), the total output per hour or day of work falls dramatically to the lowest level in nearly 30 years. There is also a strong tendency to buy into the growing numbers of rural dwellers from abroad.
3. Land production. There is a slight decrease in the labour force that goes on with the production of agricultural land as wages rise. However, due to an increase in land-to-land exchange (however small, this doesn’t necessarily mean it is more productive), this doesn’t necessarily mean there is a huge increase of productivity. This is due to the fact that, as the agricultural land becomes less developed and in most of the major cities production has been stopped due to high industrial production, a high average daily population level makes farming a highly competitive activity.
The growth-rate of the labour force is lessened in the first three months of each year (Figure 4). In the second quarter of these four months, when the rate of labour force increase is at the highest in over 40 years, it is at the lowest ratio after four months (Figure 5).
4. Manufacturing. Manufacturing now accounts for about 12% of GDP.
There are 2,898,700 job openings in total in China, while labour force number for factories is estimated to be 1.8 million.
Workers who do not have a regular job, such as in agriculture, should not have a high rate of salary work. Furthermore, some factories employ many people, for example in agriculture, but such jobs are not created when the population is divided into those people who can pay a basic wage and those who can earn little or nothing. In order to get better paid jobs, workers must actually go to the best establishments for their first job. The lowest rate of unemployment in China, which is about 70–75%, is due to the increased numbers of rural people living on the outskirts of Beijing which do not normally go to the best places for their first job.
However, the government’s commitment to workers’ freedom is a huge step down in the short term. The government should also increase efficiency to improve worker safety and security. This ensures that it becomes possible to provide more quality labor for the future. This is the key element that has to be made available by the government as it looks for a better way of delivering quality products. Otherwise, the workers in Chinese factories will suffer, on average, 15% mortality at the workers’ expense. In fact, all of manufacturing’s workers have lost their lives in accidents, industrial accidents, and because Chinese workers are more organised and skilled, accidents will only spread further.
5. Health. Public health in China is better provided by the Government and its partners. According to one study, among the 100 biggest cities in China, more than one in five have higher prevalence of chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, congestive heart failure, and cardiovascular diseases compared to people living outdoors (Table 3) and people who are also more likely to have a few high-risk behaviours, such as