Chinese inflation rate continues to decline.

The Chinese seem to be doing a pretty good job of managing their rapidly growing and changing economy, according to this article via Yahoo News. Inflation is down for the fifth straight month, an indication that something is going well. Briefly, harvests were good and food is cheap.


The entire article gives a nice overview of the current state of China's domestic economy, something you don't hear too much about. The article also says that wages are beginning to rise, which may come as a surprise to those who claim China's growing prosperity is due entirely to its cheap labor.

Note that food costs are included in the inflation figure. In the US, the standard inflatioin figures you hear typically exclude food and energy, altho I've never been able to understand why. Well, they claim they're too "volatile", which doesn't make sense to me. I would think that would make it even more important to include them. But I'm not an economist, so what do I know?

Well, there is one thing I do know. And that is that in corporate America, "inflation" is a code word for "wage increases". It doesn't really represent the prices of most goods or services. At least, that's how Alan Greenspan thinks of it. Because of his depression-era economics and his corporate perspective, he thinks of wage increases as a "problem", something that damages or at least threatens the economy. When in fact, they represent increased purchasing power and are generally the sign of a growing and prosperous economy. The failure of corporate America to increase wages as profits and costs go up is the major reason that the American economy has become so stagnant in recent years. People can't spend more money if they don't have more. It's as simple as that, but the great minds in the business community can't see it.






Chinese send 11 billion new year's messages.

Yahoo news story. China now has mobile phone users than the US has people, and they sent over 11 billion text and other messages over the recent New Year's celebrations. Just a mark of what a wired world this is getting to be.








World Order, Failed States and Terrorism.

The brilliant Henry C. K. Liu's latest series of essays is called World Order, Failed States and Terrorism, with the first two parts available over at the Asia Times. Long, detailed overviews of global developments from one of the most knowledgeable scholars around. My personal favorite actually. A complete list of his work is here.


It's disappointing that he continues to use the semantically meaningless term "terrorism", but I guess that he's just trying to speak in terms his readers understand. Or maybe just habit. If so, it's a habit it's time to break. I personally prefer the terms soldier, fighter, warrior, insurgent or whatever, depending on what it is they actually are or are doing. Using the t-word is just a way to avoid dealing with the complexities involved. But what do I know?

The Asia Times (atimes.com) just keeps getting better and better. Nice long, detailed articles and essays by people who really know what's going on, along with a growing community of people adding their two cents worth. And a truly global perspective, unlike the so-called western media. It's hard to hit that fine line between honest criticism of the US and self-indulgent America-bashing, but they (generally) do a pretty good job of it. But they're not afraid to publish stuff by opinionated individuals. I particularly like it's letters page and its new forum.






China's ambitious road building plans.

In All roads lead to China in the Hong Kong based Weekend Standard, Graham Lees gives a good overview and discussion of China's incredibly ambitious road program. He compares it to the great expansion of American roads during Dwight Eisenhower's adminstration, which is credited with sparking America's great postwar boom. China's could be even bigger. The goal is to tie the entire nation together the way the American roads did. Via the Agonist.






EU to resume arms sales to China.

Via the Agonist. Bloomberg reports that the EU is indeed going to resume arms sales to China.

The US has been frantically trying to stop this, claiming that China is a dangerous tyranny with extensive violation of human rights, but people don't seem to be buying that anymore. Maybe now folks are coming to think that arming China may be the best way to counteract the influence of the US and thus _help_ human rights around the world. Things are changing rapidly.


A rather strange remark from an official of a country with over 2 million people in prison, and uncounted thousands being held in secret detention camps all over the world. I wonder how the federal government would react if thousands of American students gathered together in Washington, DC demanding democratic reforms.

This follows earlier reports that Russia and China have set up military relations, the first time ever for the People's Republic. The two countries will be having extensive joint military maneuvers later this year. I bet that Indian and European observers will be there as well.


That was from an Indian paper. I don't know why news of this isn't showing up in the Euro-American media. In any case, American pressure on Iran seems to be driving them into closer alliances with China and Russia, as well as the EU. And more and more China seems to be becoming the go-to nation for countries needing support in standing up to the US.






Interview with Arundhati Roy.

Via Common Dreams. Amy Goodman interviews Arundhati Roy on the recent elections in India and many other issues.


I knew that the folks in the BJP were pretty rotten, but I didn't realize just how bad they were. She also reports on something extremely frightening, the virtual enslavement of Indians by the Americans to serve in Iraq. I can't believe the degree and extent of the horrors Americans are perpetrating all over the world these days.


The complete transcript of the interview is here, at the Democracy Now site. Also see Arundhati's recent article in the Guardian, Let us hope the darkness has passed, as well as an article she wrote last fall, in response to the American occupation of Iraq, We should consider ourselves at war.






Arundhati Roy on the Indian elections.

In the Guardian comment section, writer Arundhati Roy reviews the results of the election in India, along with an overview of the very complicated political scene there.

What's especially interesting is her comments on the serious violations of civil rights there. Because of a long outdated anti-Communist bias, China is usually the Asian nation criticized for violations of civil rights, but it would appear that India may even be worse. Conditions in Kashmir are horrendous. And it would appear that torture and beating of prisoners is just as bad in India as it is in Iraq and other places.

Most western news reports on the country lately have focused on the growing economy. But she paints a much darker and less encouraging picture. In particular she describes how POTA, the Indian equivalent of America's Patriot Act, is, as in the US, being used to attack domestic political opponents and the poor more than it is being used to fight terrorism.


Anyway, it certainly is interesting that the people of India would make a strong shift to the left at this particular juncture in history. Ms. Roy sounds rather skeptical that it will make much difference. I certainly admire her continuing to tell it like it is. Last winter I posted a link to her essay, We should consider ourselves at war, which was in response to developments in Iraq. It still seems rather relevant. Perhaps even more so.






China lead topic at Davos.

Business Week reports that the booming Chinese economy is the lead topic at the World Economic Forum at Davos.

It's the usual biased type of reporng you'd expect from them. What's really curious is that in their limited world view the test of success of the Chinese economy is whether or not American and European investors can make money there. But was it necessary for Chinese investors to make money for the American economy to succeed? Of course not.

So why should it be the other way around? They don't need outside investment. It would be useful, certainly, but it's ludicrous to suggest it's essential. But they still have this archaic notion of China as a "third world" economy, that couldn't possibly have the resources or expertise to successfully manage its own affairs. Overseas Chinese have the largest pool of capital in the world now, and, along with the domestic investors, are more than able and willing to provide the money necessary. In fact though BW does acknowledge this, but then goes on to ignore it.


Actually, it's the other way around. Corporate America and corporate Europe _need_ to be able to invest in China, since their companies are losing money in their own countries. They are desperate for new markets.

Another point that they seem to miss is this assumption that capital is still what's necessary to create business and to drive an economy. Which is an obsolete idea. There's no shortage of capital in the world anymore. If anything, there's an overabundance of it. What's needed now is creativity and hard work, which the Chinese have in abundance.

But they can't shake this view that unless the Americans, Europeans and Japanese are making money there, an economy is in bad shape. In the end, though, they acknowledge that the potential is greater than the problems.


The real problem, especially for Americans, is the almost complete lack of education about China in American schools, especially the language. The Chinese avidly study English, but very, very few Americans study Chinese. (Consider if you will how many of the people at Business Week actually know Chinese, and can even read their economic reports?) And it extends to the rest of the culture as well. The Chinese know almost all there is to know now about Euro-American medicine and science, but not vice-versa. And China has a long and sophisticated history of culture and science and technology. They're more than a match for any other culture. The same goes for India.

Anyway, if you're looking to invest in China, or the rest of Asia for that matter, I'd go to the Asia Times rather than Business Week. The intellectual level is much higher, and they are so much more objective it is not even funny. Especially the works of Henry C. Liu, an Asian-American New York-based investment manager who writes for the Asian Times, and who has an absolutely superb grasp of the history and culture, and how it relates to the economy.






Goodbye to China.

And John Gittings, recently returned from 25 years of covering China for the Guardian, reports that rapid changes there are about to shatter our crude cold war cliches.








Malaysian government says CDs and DVDs overpriced.

Via Zeropaid.com. The Malaysian governnment has called for a boycott of the entertainment industry until they lower prices, claiming that it's the unrealistic prices that are the primary cause of so-called "piracy."


Interesting. More demands for lower prices. Compare this to yesterday's entry on demands within the US that the drug industry also lower its prices.






Suu Kyi again taken into custody in Burma.

The Observer reports that four people were killed as the Burmese military again arrested the Nobel Peace Prize winning activist.


No one seems to care about the extent of the problems in Burma. If she was a Palestinian of course, this would be front page news. Pardon my cynicism. :)






Strikes in India.

The BBC reports that millions of Indians have gone on strike to protest privatisation and changes in labor laws.

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