Niall Ferguson: China Will Overtake the US within a Decade
Niall Ferguson, historian and author of Civilization, tells Robert Miller that the credit crisis means China's economy will overtake the US much quicker than expected
Watch Telegraph video here | Monday, March 07, 2011

Social Stability To Reduce Inflation And Corruption – Wen Jiabao

By MALILA Harris

CHINA NEWS – China’s premier Wen Jiabao said in the parliamentary annual session that the country had to fight inflation and corruption by ensuring social stability. He was addressing about 3,000 delegates, opening the National People’s Congress in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

He expected that the government could check the inflation within 4% and ascend economic growth of 8%. He admitted that the uneven economic development caused serious problem for the nation.

The social stability factor also echoed in an editorial in the Communist mouthpiece ‘Beijing Daily’, which warned against the pro-democracy protest, which it blamed Middle East Asia to fuel it.

Mr. Jiabao said the inflation has risen fairly quickly and in future it would go upward. Eh further added that the increase in prices would affect people’s well-being, bears on overall interests and affects social stability. He emphasized on macroeconomic control to reduce overall price growth.

Inflation in China is at 4.9% and believes to in increasing graph despite three interest hikes. Some analysts say it still to reach its peak.

China’s major problem is now increase in food prices as the poor people spends more than half of their income on food so they have to bear the brunt most.

This year National People’s Congress meets for 10 days, and is going to approve five-year plan for 2011-2015. The plan aims to create more sustainable growth and reduce the inequality in wealth between rich and poor.

Mr. Jiabao said that the government would focus on increasing domestic demand as a long term strategic principle. He emphasized on domestic growth as a ladder to step on China’s economic development. He also said that the government would take appropriate measures to curb the rising price of real estate in some cities.

At present China stands at the second in terms of economic growth, however, the success of decades has come at the cost of rapid environmental pollution. Much of the growth has been driven by exports and large infrastructure projects, but analysts contemplate the growth might be stopped or decrease unless it changes course.

China Doesn't Allow The Dissident Liu Xiaobo Or Family To Attend Nobel Ceremony

By ETHAN Markoff

CHINA NEWS - History repeat itself, however, this time in a more uncompromising manner. When Soviet physicist and human rights advocate Andrei D. Sakharov was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in midst of cold war, he wasn't allowed to attend the ceremony but his wife to collect the award. In a similar example Polish authorities didn't allow trade unionist Lech Walesa to travel to Oslo, but his wife collected the award in his stead. In 1991, Myanmar opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's son accepted the prize when his mother was being held under house arrest.

But the obstinate Chinese government have decided to break but not bend on their approach. They have been practicing a muscular offensive way to protest against the so called Western ploy to undermine the Chinese Communist Party's hold on power. This year Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Liu Xiaobo, 54 years-old who is currently serving an 11-year sentence for subversion. The government has decided not to allow his wife or family member to collect the award, and adding insult to the injury, wife of Mr. Xiaobo has been held incommunicado since news of the award broke last month.

Chinese authority is very clear in the approach, giving warning foreign governments to boycott the award ceremony. Not only that, the government has put strict restriction and surveillance on prominent dissidents and intellectuals.

The uncompromising hostile attitude of Chinese government is remarkably offensive. In fact, the government declared that the prize money including a medal and $1.5 million in cash would probably be postponed.

China in the recent past has gained an unprecedented economic mileage and probably because of its strong economic integration into the global economy that neither achieved by any Communist nation before, giving voice to confront the West mobilization technique to whole world.

“Awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo once again reflects the strong attempts of Western countries to intervene in the political process in China,” said a commentary that ran this month in the official newspaper People’s Daily.

Although it appears that China urge not to attend the Oslo ceremony to other nations has hit an iron wall of disapproval. A very few countries such as Russia, Iraq, Cuba and Kazakhstan have agreed to China's plea for a boycott. However, 36 other countries have declared that they would send attend the ceremony.

China Suffers From Rising Food Price

By MALILA Harris

CHINA NEWS - China in the recent past, has witnessed an exponential economic growth. However, the double-digit food price inflation has rung a tone in the government's ears. In a recent statement, China's premier Wen Jiabao assured Chinese people that the government was trying its best to find new measures to tackle with the rising food prices.

In the government website, he said that the government council had planning to formulate new measurements to tackle with the problem. However, he unrevealed any detail about the plan of action. Analysts are contemplating that effective measures would be in the form of price caps, subsidies and penalties for food hoarding.

Meanwhile in another trouble brewed when the Shanghai stock exchange stoop nearly 10% low in four days because of sudden scare of interest rate rises.

Recently, one of the biggest banks of China The People's Bank of China increased interest rates due to inflation, and adopted hostile nature since.

It is reported that in October consumer price inflation rose to 4.4% and this was the highest increase in last two years.

Food prices are particularly in severe condition that directly affect on common men. Last month food prices rose 10.1%.

Beijing recently criticized the US Federal Reserve's resumption of quantitative easing (QE). The Fed's new round of QE threatens to weaken the dollar, making Chinese imports less competitive in the US. But to ease the situation, the People's Bank of China is expected to buy more dollars and sell more yuan.

However, there is a danger behind it as selling more yuan would fuel more inflation.

China May Be Bigger Economy Than US Within Two Years
Barack Obama greets China's Paramount Leader, Hu Jintao. Photo: The Daily Telegraph
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH – BLOGS – JEREMY WARNER: Here’s a finding that will have any red-blooded American spluttering into his cornflakes. According to the Conference Board, a highly respected economic research association, China will overtake the US as the world’s biggest economy by 2012, or within two years. Read on and comment >>> Jeremy Warner | Wednesday, November 10, 2010