Beijing is fearful that violent class and inter-state conflicts are emerging in Europe.
A key comment by the Communist Party’s People’s Daily warned: “Fundamentally, Europe is facing a problem of systemic integration and survival. Overcoming the crisis depends on whether the debt-ridden countries can decide on painful reforms and rouse their spirits to tackle them.”
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The Chinese leadership is facing a dilemma. “Painful” austerity measures are necessary to stabilise the global financial markets, but these will also devastate the living standards of the European population—collectively the largest consumer of the cheap goods manufactured in China.
Because of the ongoing turmoil in Europe and the weakening US economy, Chinese growth slowed to 8.1 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2012, the lowest rate in three years. A leading government think tank, the China Centre for International Economic Exchange, warned that the figure might drop below 7 percent in the second quarter.
The clearest indicator of a weakening economy is that electricity consumption rose only 1.5 percent in April, year-on-year, and 3.2 percent in May, far short of the customary double-digit growth. The two months’ figures are the worst since the spring of 2009, when many export factories shut down, retrenching 20 million workers, following the 2008 crash.
A key comment by the Communist Party’s People’s Daily warned: “Fundamentally, Europe is facing a problem of systemic integration and survival. Overcoming the crisis depends on whether the debt-ridden countries can decide on painful reforms and rouse their spirits to tackle them.”
...
The Chinese leadership is facing a dilemma. “Painful” austerity measures are necessary to stabilise the global financial markets, but these will also devastate the living standards of the European population—collectively the largest consumer of the cheap goods manufactured in China.
Because of the ongoing turmoil in Europe and the weakening US economy, Chinese growth slowed to 8.1 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2012, the lowest rate in three years. A leading government think tank, the China Centre for International Economic Exchange, warned that the figure might drop below 7 percent in the second quarter.
The clearest indicator of a weakening economy is that electricity consumption rose only 1.5 percent in April, year-on-year, and 3.2 percent in May, far short of the customary double-digit growth. The two months’ figures are the worst since the spring of 2009, when many export factories shut down, retrenching 20 million workers, following the 2008 crash.
