Debate: Topic and Outline
毎月行われているYYクラブのディスカッションの概要(英訳と日本語訳あり)
反・グローバル化の動き
新たな年2017年を迎えて早くも、5か月が過ぎました。昨年以
2105年以降、シリアからの難民問題を抱える欧州とメキシコか
今月は米国(含む、トラン大統領の)問題および中国は米国を追い
II. Movement towards Anti-Globalization in the US
3.2 Introduction of the opposing views to seeing China as the nextworld leader, and their credibility
With the rise of China (which is, with the US decline especially in itseconomy), more and more people say that “the dominance of the US in the world may not continue.” This opinion is based on the optimistic prediction of China’s economic growth. According to this prediction, ” by 2020, or by the 2020s at the latest, China will surpass the United States and become the world’s economic superpower, and these two countries will be leading the world. This is so called the 2G theory.
Let’s examine this opinion.
This opinion assumes that “China will have sustained economic growth in the future.” (So called ‘linear model’) However, is it reasonable? Is it realistic?
That is, until a few years ago, China is said to have experienced an conomic growth rate of 10%, in recent years of 7~ 8% and optimistic forecasts are made. Will it sustain its growth till it surpasses the US economy?
Now let’s figure out how we can best predict the future of China.
To put it easily, “Will China become the world’s economic superpower by 2030?” This prediction would have a great impact on the international strategy. Also, in turn, it would have an important influence on the foreign policies of Japan; its allied nation.
Let me introduce the views of Mr. Nozomu Takaoka for your reference.
(1) Problem facing China
The population of China is said to be four times bigger than that of the US. Although China is now economically as big as the United States, from the perspective of international power, it does not have immediate significance. According to the World Bank ? IMF analysis, “If China’s economic power is predicted with purchasing power parity, China’s GDP will overtake the US slightly in 2014″. If China continues to maintain its surplus in the trade balance and capital accounts and can prepare a huge foreign exchange reserves, the influence on the international financial market will increase. However, the US, as the key currency country, can monitor the international settlement of dollars and stop the trade if necessary.
China is conscious of this power of the United States, and China- leading Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which was established without Japan, put forth the internationalization of “Chinese Yuan” as one of its main purposes. In order to promote this internationalization, it is necessary to liberalize capital transactions and there are many
problems to be solved.
(2) Problem 2
It is doubtful whether the economic indicators announced by the Chinese government accurately reflect the actual condition of the economy.
In the past, (2007) secretary Lee Kook-shee (current prime minister), who was at the top of Liaoning Province at the time, stated himself that the indicator called “Li Keqiang ? index,” which included 3 indicators; railway cargo / transport volume, bank loan balance, and electricity consumption, was closer to the Ministry’s economic reality than the government-issued GDP. As this case suggests, the economic management of China needs to be more transparent.
(3) Problem 3: Middle-income trap problem (this problem is more important, more fundamental than the others)
In the future, two large downward pressures will be exerted on the growth rate, and the slowdown will be inevitable.
Here, one factor of the downward pressure is “the trap of middle income people.” This is a situation that happens to many developing countries undergoing economic growth, in which, after reaching a moderate level of per capita GDP, the growth rate slows down and they cannot join other high income nations.
(4) The second downward pressure on the Chinese economy
An important factor that determines the potential growth rate of the national economy in the medium and long term is a negative legacy in demographic dynamics; in other words, it is the aftereffect of declining birthrate by its one-child policy. This policy was abolished in 2015, but of course, the productive age population has declined since then. Therefore, the effect of population increase cannot be expected in the near future. We have to wait for at least 15 to 20 years before the number of the working population can increase. And
until then, it seems impossible to stop its population decline, although the Chinese government is currently insisting that it is possible now with the abolishment of its one-child policy. And until then, it is none other than a downward pressure (effect) on the economy.
In the past, Japan and Korea also experienced a rapid growth of 10%, followed by a stable growth of about 4%, and since then, the growth rate has been decreasing. The major reason for this is the decline of the working population which used to be increasing in the past.
If China can overcome these problems and maintain a growth rate of 6 to 7%, it will be possible to overtake the United States. This will require growth factors not found in Japan or Korea.
Now let’s look at the United States. Due to the inflow of immigrants and the high fertility rate of Hispanics, the production-age population will continue to increase. (This explains about the 2% of the current growth rate improvement.)
For the reasons above, we cannot deny the theory Professor Nye proposes: “the United States’ century will continue.”
*Author’s comment:
For the reasons mentioned above, welcoming immigrants is important for the future of the United States. President Trump’s policy with the focus on national security and countermeasures against terrorism may be appealing and accepted in the short term, but in the medium and long term, it is likely that economic problems will occur.
Written by Mr.Chiba and translated by Mr. Sasaki
ご参考(日本語訳)
II. 米国のAnti-Globalizationへの動向
3.2 中国重視の異論の紹介とその議論の的確さについて
中国の台頭により、(これは取りも直さず、米国の、特に経済的地
この意見を以下に吟味する。
この意見は「中国の経済成長が将来も持続することが前提となって
即ち、数年前まで、中国の経済成長率は10%であった。最近でも
ここで、中国の将来をどのように予測すべきかを考える。
わかり易く言えば、「2030年までに中国は世界一の経済大国に
このことは、米国の世界戦略へ重大な影響を与える。また同盟国・
高岡望氏*の意見を参考に紹介する。
(1)中国の問題点1:
中国の人口は米国の4倍となっているが、経済サイズがトータルで
世界銀行・IMFの分析によれば、「中国の経済力を『購買力平価
(2)問題点2:
中国政府の発表する経済指標が経済の実態を正確に反映しているか
(3)問題点3:「中所得者の罠」の問題(より重要で、根本的問
今後、中国の成長率は2つの大きな下向圧力が働き、成長の鈍化傾
ここで、下向圧力の一つの要因は「中所得者の罠」である。これは
(4)中国経済における第2の下向圧力
国の経済の潜在成長率を中・長期的に決定する重要な要素は人口動
であろう。これには日本や韓国にない要因が必要となろう。
また、米国の場合はどうか?:
日本、韓国にはない、移民の流入とヒスパニックの高い出生率によ
以上により、ナイ教授の「米国の世紀は変わらない」とする意見を
著者コメント
米の国将来にとって、移民の受け入れは上記理由で重要であり、治