Market Watch

China’s exports are tapering off as the world economy teeters,but investment and consumption have maintained momentum, offsetting the impact of weakening exports. The auto market continues cooling as the with drawal of policy incentives pours cold water on buyers’interest. A bright spot is the ecommerce sector, which reported surprisingly brisk growth in the third quarter. China’s industries are currently the world’s most competitive, but the road ahead will be a bumpy one.     

Touching stones to cross the river: Evolving telecommunication policy priorities in contemporary China

This article, drawing on fieldwork in China, charts the ascendancy of Lian Tong (China Unicom), the first competitor to the incumbent Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. Commencing with an historical overview of Chinese telecommunications, it suggests that Lian Tong's formation has been contingent upon support from key constituencies within China's political elite. The company's emergence mirrors technological trends and user pressure evident globally. It embodies the drive towards market liberalisation now evident within the Peoples’ Republic. While the Chinese policy community is sensible of the need to make haste slowly toward the goal of telecommunications competition — ‘touching stones to cross the river’ in the contemporary aphorism — the success of this ‘policy experiment’ depends both on the subtleties of Chinese politics and the construction of bold new regulatory frameworks. Lian Tong's genesis is symbolic of developments in the telecommunications sector, and maybe also more generally in the Chinese economy.     

MARKET WATCH

China’s manufacturing industry continues to lose momentum, as reflected by a falling PMI.The third-party payment sector’s transactions have grown rapidly as a result of an e-commerce boom.Foreign companies make in- roads into China’s restaurant industry by acquiring local competitors.The Ministry of Railways is burdened with a load of debt due to a building spree of high-speed railways.The Internet portal Sohu.com has generated juicy profits.     

中国权证法律规制的现实状况与未来路向

权证在中国证券市场中经历了曲折的发展过程,如今的权证市场极其萎缩。鉴于权证在中国资本市场与市场化与国际化深入发展进程中的重要作用,正确审视现行权证法律规制的不足,并构建未来权证法律规制的发展路径是十分必要的。该文主要通过历史分析方法概括了中国权证及其法律规制的演进过程,并指出备兑权证将是中国未来权证市场的主流产品,相应地在立足现行权证法律规制之上,应建立健全权证法律法规体系、完善权证具体法律制度。     

MARKET WATCH

China adds to its holdings of U.S. Treasury securities for the first time in three months. China’s auto market stages a significant comeback in August as vehicle sales grew 6.29 percent from July figures. The Anshan Iron & Steel Group Corp. concluded an agreement to invest in the United States, ending doubts about the feasibility of the deal. State -owned enterprises raked in juicy profits from January to August this year. China inches up on the global competitiveness ranking list. Global payment giant MasterCard Worldwide predicts China will replace the United States as the world’s top credit card market by 2020.     

完善中国票据市场发展的系统思考

在经历过20世纪80年代的起步发育到90年代的规范、发展，中国票据市场近年来呈现持续快速的发展趋势，票据融资功能在金融市场中的地位日益重要，票据市场成为货币市场重要的组成部分。该文对中国近十年票据市场情况以及票据市场规模在快速发展后发展速度又放缓的问题进行了分析，并对中国票据市场进一步的发展完善提出一些思考与建议。     

A Case Study on the Settlement of Rural Women affected by Land Requisitioning in China

Urbanization is an apparent and important dimension of modernization in China. One of the main problems in China's urbanization process is the migration of farmers from the agricultural sector to the non-agricultural sector and the concurrent conversion of agricultural lands to non-agricultural usage. According to current practice, the conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural use is carried out by the state through land requisitioning. In the past ten years, China's urbanization in the name of ‘economic development zones’ has resulted in extensive requisitioning of agricultural land. Millions of villagers have lost their land and left farming, seeking new employment in non-agricultural activities to sustain them. This study investigates the impact of land requisitioning on rural women's living, focusing on women's employment, training and settlement.

The study did not find evidence of discrimination against women in land requisitioning and settlement arrangements with regard to both the policy design and implementation. However, rural women are disadvantaged in attending education and training as compared with men even before land requisitioning. After their land is requisitioned, women also participate less in education and training, have a lower rate of success in finding jobs and are less likely to be self-employed than men. This has some negative impacts on their livelihoods. One policy implication of this study is: on the basis of relatively full compensation, the government should set up or entrust a special agency to promote skills training of the affected rural women, assist them with employment guidance and relevant information, and enhance their competitiveness in the job market.     

MARKET WATCH

Consumer Efforts If it is true China has fully shaken off the economic downturn,consumption deserves much of the credit.     

基于全球价值链视角的中国制造业国家价值链的构建

中国制造业经过30多年的对外开放已经全面融人全球价值链体系,这种融入主要是通过中国出口产品的国际市场份额、RCA指数以及产业内贸易IIT指数等三个指标来反映,但在全球价值链分工中中国一直处于低位徘徊的地位,而要改变这种状况必须在全球价值链体系下构建中国制造业国家价值链。该文着重分析了影响中国制造业国家价值链构建的主要因素,包括来自发达国家的干涉和封锁、中国的政府行为及政府间利益冲突等,强调在中国制造业国家价值链重构过程中要积极发挥政府的作用,包括政府要切实降低本国制造企业构建国家价值链的制度成本、规范地方政府竞争行为的导向、促进加工贸易企业转型升级以及要加快培育中国的中等收入阶层等方面的思路和建议。     

MARKET WATCH

China vows to keep a stringent handle on the industrial overcapacity that is draining life from the economic revival. China Mobile pushes forward OPhone and its operating system in an aggressive push into the 3G market. As its tight grip over the market slips, the wireless titan cannot wait to regain lost ground. China's manufacturing sector continues to pick up steam as evidenced by the climbing PMI. Soaring prices of pork and eggs reignite fears over inflation. The buoyant real estate market appears to be...     

A Way out for Private Enterprises

The private sector is a major driving force behind China’s economic growth.The current global economic situation and certain policy hurdles,however,are making it di cult for the country’s smaller private businesses to stay afloat.     

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In an attempt to boost liquidity, China’s central bank decreases the reserve requirement ratio for the first time in three years. The November purchasing managers index tumbles below the boom-and-bust line of 50 percent, indicating downside growth risks. As they tighten delisting rules on the growth enterprise board, China’s securities regulator tries to protect interests of investors. The Ministry of Commerce has released a development outline for the service trade sector. Chinese shipbuilders face a bumpy road ahead due to weakness in demand. Credit card fever is sweeping through the country, though debt risks still loom large.     

工农业协调发展的体制演进考察

我国工农业发展与资源配置方式直接相关。计划经济体制下形成城乡工农业部门资源配置的隔离格局,造成农业生产的"内卷化"及城市工业低效率和高消耗的恶性循环;市场取向改革条件下形成城乡工农业部门资源配置的双向互动格局;市场机制作用下农村和农业资源向城市和非农产业逆向流动;以工哺农背景下的包容性增长体制使工农业部门资源配置和流动趋向协调。     

MARKET WATCH

Outbound Rush Despite a deep downturn in the world economy, Chinese firms are beefing up efforts to head overseas. China's outbound direct investment (ODI) rose 1.1 percent year on year to $56.53 billion in 2009, the largest among developing countries, said a report jointly released by the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), the National Bureau of Statistics and the Sate Administration of Foreign Exchange on September 5. This was the eighth consecutive year of growth.     

China and the Asian Economies: mutual acceptance,economic interaction and interactive dynamics

The objective of this article is to explore the economic relationship between China and the surrounding dynamic Asian economies. It delves into China's influence over the Asian economies and whether this relationship has evolved in a market- and institution-led symbiotic manner. The three principal channels of regional integration analyzed in this article are trade, FDI and vertically integrated production networks. Another issue that this article explores is the so-called China ‘threat’ or ‘fear’ in Asia. The China threat implied that China was crowding out exports from the other Asian economies in the world market place. Also, as China became the most attractive FDI destination among developing countries, it was understood that China was receiving FDI at the expense of the Asian economies. These concerns were examined by several empirical studies and the inference was that they were exaggerated. The article concludes that China methodically expanded and deepened its economic ties with its regional neighbors. At the present juncture, China's integration with the surrounding Asian nations is deep. Both China and its dynamic Asian neighbors have benefited from this synergy.     

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Capital Destination China has maintained its appeal to foreign investors thanks to a thriving economy and government policies to entice investors.     

MARKET WATCH

China remains an attractive destination for foreign investments,despite signs that capital inflow is tapering off.China’s textile manufacturers are generating handsome returns,but uncertainties still loom large.The country’s funds spill red ink due to less-than-favorable stock market outcomes.The sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp.cashes in on its expanding global presence.The Chinese search giant Baidu.com gains momentum thanks to robust traffic growth and business diversification.     

MARKET WATCH

Stock Market Woes The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has retreated more than 12 percent so far this year as lingering concerns over tightening monetary policies keep the mood subdued.     

External Contradictions of the Chinese Development Model: export-led growth and the dangers of global economic contraction

China's development model faces an external constraint that could cause an economic hard landing. China has become a global manufacturing powerhouse, and its size now renders its export-led growth strategy unsustainable. China relies on the US market, but the scale of its exports is contributing to the massive US trade deficit, creating financial fragility and undermining the US manufacturing sector. These developments could stall the US economy's expansion, in turn triggering a global recession that will embrace China. This is the external constraint. These considerations suggest that China should transition from export-led growth to domestic demand-led growth. This requires growing the economy's demand side as well as its supply-side. To avoid stalling the US economic expansion, which is critical to China's growth, China should significantly revalue its currency as part of a generalized East Asian upward currency revaluation. Longer term, China should raise wages and improve income distribution. Under export-led growth, higher wages undermine employment. Under domestic demand-led growth, they support it. The challenge is to raise wages in an efficient decentralized manner. History shows that this requires independent democratic trade unions. However, such unions are currently unacceptable to the Chinese political leadership. Creating a domestic demand-led growth regime therefore requires solving this political roadblock.     

The Systematic Politicization of China’s Stock Markets

The paradox that the performance of China’s stock market has not matched the performance of China’s real economy has been puzzling. This article argues that one of the major causes of the poor performance of China’s stock markets is that ever since their establishment, China’s stock markets have been systematically politicized by the ruling party to promote its political agenda. The mantra of ‘socialism’ of the ruling party has turned the stock markets into a mere fund-raising vehicle largely for failing state-owned enterprises, with investors’ interests being only a secondary consideration. The regulation of stock markets is subject to the principle of maintaining one-party ruling. Such a systematic politicization of stock markets has caused some serious consequences for China’s stock markets and economic growth.