China, A New Global Player

Chapter 12 provides a look at China, which has not been included in our analysis of largely developed economies. Chinese growth has been extraordinary with stunning effects, largely improvements, although pollution has worsened for a substantial share of the world's lower-income population. The Chinese model may well be unique, a complicated mix of socialist structures, state ownership of some large enterprises and much of finance, dirigiste state-led and state-financed development of the private sector, and some outright privatization at both the small and grand scale. But China faces the challenge of financialization that has some commonalities with financialization in the rest of the world yet with some uniquely Chinese features. There have been some precursors of financial trouble and ambiguity about the state as the final guarantor of private debt. Some of the key players and episodes as Chinese capitalism enters its financialized stage are profiled.