New Here?

Trends in China

07
Mar

China’s (Booming) Vitamin and Dietary Supplements (VDS) Market

The Vitamin and Dietary Supplements market represents yet another example of a booming industry that China is poised to dominate, with Roland Berger data indicating the fact that the market is expected to find support north of $40 billion by 2023, boasting an impressive 14% CAGR. These figures should (of course, this is dependent on

Read More
06
Mar

(More or Less Misunderstood) Consumption Trends in China: Consumerism on Steroids?

Time and time again, observers find certain consumption trends in China downright peculiar. For example, why on Earth has there been such a surge in luxury spending and generally speaking, spending meant to impress the proverbial Chinese version of the Jones family in a country that used to be plagued by debilitating poverty a few

Read More
05
Mar

The Cultural “Westernization” of China: Hollywood, Pop Culture and Their Economic Effects

In a world tailor-made to the specifications of the Communist Party of China (in a let’s say ideal scenario from the perspective of the CPC), the population of China would reject any and all Western components, elements the Party considers detrimental to its very self-preservation interests. Unfortunately for the CPC, that’s not exactly how things

Read More
04
Mar

Pet Ownership in China: A Surprising Mega-Trend

Ask any elderly Chinese citizen to describe let’s say a “textbook” urban scene from back when he was young and ask an American to do the same. Among other differences, you will most likely notice that pets are absent from the description of the elderly Chinese. Contrary to popular belief, pets are anything but completely

Read More
02
Mar

Life Expectancy in China: Past, Present, Trends and Implications

There are few metrics which make it more obvious just how far along China has come than life expectancy-related ones. In the first half of the sixties for example, the average life expectancy at birth in China was well over 50 years, in line with severely under-developed nations. It was only as of 1966 that

Read More
01
Mar

Monopolies and Oligopolies in China: Entrepreneurship Deterrent?

Few things are more conducive to entrepreneurship-driven economic growth than a level playing field, than an economic reality which enables anyone with a dream to go for it. Think of it as the difference between achieving centralized economic growth that is “orchestrated” by the state and achieving “organic” growth in a free market framework by

Read More
28
Feb

Stagflation Risks in China (and Elsewhere)

Under normal circumstances, whether we are referring to nations that can be considered highly developed based on nominal as well as per capita metrics (the United States and Germany, for example), under-developed nations or countries such as China that lie somewhere in-between (developed in nominal terms, under-developed based on per capita metrics), the relationship between

Read More
27
Feb

Inflation vs. Deflation: Implications for China

Time and time again, those in charge of monetary as well as fiscal policy try to find the right balance between avoiding deflation and not bringing about an inflationary spiral. The more let’s say vulnerable a nation is, the more it can be considered at risk from this perspective. To put it differently, things are

Read More
24
Feb

Meritocracy in China: Meritocratic Society or Dunning-Kruger Effect on Steroids?

Say what you want about let’s call it Western society but for better or worse, a valid case can be made that meritocracy contributed to the current dominance (economic and otherwise) of the West. Whether meritocracy took the form of capitalism (the proverbial American dream, if you will) or socialism (in Northern Europe, with different

Read More
05
Feb

Corruption in China: Temporary Roadblock or Long-Term Curse?

Not only is this article written from the perspective of ChinaFund.com’s managing partner (the managing partner of an entity with a hands-on experience in China which exceeds 13 years), it’s also written from the perspective of someone who grew up in Eastern Europe, in a country that became essentially (in)famous at the very least regionally

Read More