China
China comes second after the United States in the list of having the biggest economy. Its economy is known for growing at a high speed in the past three decades. China is also known for importing and exporting goods at a high rate in the world. The country usually trade with nations like America, Japan, and Germany among others, which create over half of China’s trade in the international market. In 2010, investments from other nations into the country were over $100 billion and Chinese oversea organizations brought $59 billion, an incidence that has never been experienced before (Hoffmann & Enright, 2008). In 2010, China’s Gross Domestic Product was estimated by international monetary fund at $5.87 trillion. The regions around the coast of China are well industrialized compared to hinterland areas, which are not developed as such. This article will discuss the current economic situation in China, gross domestic product and its import and export. The paper will further explore the current communication concerning phone and internet use. Finally, the paper will expound on the level of crime and the current usage and energy consumption in China.
In 2010, China’s Gross Domestic Product grew by 9.80%. In the last two decades up to 2010, the average growth of GDP was 9.31%, the highest in China’s history. For the last three decades, the economy of China has undergone transition from a system that was planned centrally; to one that targets the market with a quick growth in private sector. One of the main things that have contributed to the rapid growth of China’s economy is the growth of exports. The GDP went from 9.2% in 2009, to 10.3% in 2010. In 2010, its inflation went down from 5.1% in November to 4.6% the following month.
The economy of China went up with 10% from 1990 to 2004, the highest rate to be experienced in the world. The GDP of China went up with 10% and 10.1% in 2003 and 2004 respectively. In 2005, it increased with 0.3% from the previous year. In 2010, its trade was over $2.97 trillion, which saw China become the second biggest country in trading in the world after America. Experts have observed that if the trend continues, there is a possibility of China creating 15 million job opportunities required annually to provide employment for its people. The GDP was at $3.32 trillion in 2007 and it continued growing to $5.87 trillion in 2010.
China has managed to maximize her exports and imports for the past years because of a number of factors. Firstly, the products of China have been competitive in the international market, leading to an increase of its shares. In order to ensure that trade is liberalized in China, the government ensures there are no obstacles that can hinder investors from other countries. This effort by the authority has shown some positive results because exports have increased in countries such as South Korea, America, and Japan among others (Chen & Wolf, 2001). Over time, the living standard has improved and consequently, the number of imports from Taiwan and Japan to mention but a few has maximized. The number of imports and exports in China has grown rapidly over years. For instance, the value of imports and exports was estimated at $2.174 trillion in 2007. Imports alone in 2007 were estimated at 956 billion, which was an increase of 25% since 2001. This is caused by the high standards of living of the Chinese who import goods.
The discovery of using the cell phone and internet in China has improved communication in that country. In 2009, calls through mobile phones accounted for over 50% of all the calls that were made. The growth in economy and the motivation of the consumer to buy cell phones, in addition to rural development are the key factors pushing the growth of telecommunication (Hoffmann & Enright, 2008). Transmission of the internet and phone between America and China is done using trans-pacific express, which is 17, 000 kilometers. Between 2003 and 2005, China decided to invest $138 billion in communication network. However, the revolution of communication has brought problem in China because it has left wires all over the towns. In addition, there are fiber optic gadgets, telephone and electricity wires which are of no use. This problem is even worse in Shanghai where there has been a lot of growth. Because of so many wires, kite flying is prohibited in parks to avoid an interference with the wires.
Some of the biggest telecommunication organizations in China are China Netcom and China Telecom. China telecom is known for offering services of fixed lines. The company operates in over twenty provinces, with over 300, 000 workers, and $15 billion in revenues. However, following competition, the company lost over 2.5 million users owing to competition. China Netcom is the second largest company that provides phone services. The company is known for providing internet services, with over 200, 000 employees, and revenues of over $4.1 billion. The mobile phone carriers include China Unicom and China Mobile, which are harbored in Beijing. The two have grown over time to move into towns and other countries. The country boasts of over 30 mobile phone makers, with China Telecom and China Mobile companies being on top.
The level of crime in China grew exponentially in 2009, and the same went up in 2010. The crime is expected to disrupt the order in the market and interfere with stability at social level. The crime of property has equally been reported. The prosecution of criminals escalated in the year 2009 by 10% and there was a 20% increase in the number of cases at public level. The increase in crime is to blame for economic crisis (Rawski, 2001). Due to crime levels escalating, studies show that conflicts related to employment will not be resolved regardless of whether the economy will improve. This year, it is predicted that robbery and theft will continue increasing. Among the crimes, robbery in the street and burglary are top on the list in many Chinese towns. Last year, close to 80,000 crimes among them tax evasion were reported. In addition, about 60,000 gangs of crime were confronted in the same year.
Energy use in China has gone up since 2001 when it joined the world trade organization. Over the last few years, the energy used went up by 71.5%, with GDP growing with 10.0% in 2007. Due to increase in energy use, China produces the highest amount of greenhouse effects according to a research by an agency from Dutch. In terms of renewing energy, China is also a leading nation in that field. Recently, the country announced plans of minimizing the total energy of coal consumed to 4 billion by 2015. The growth in economy that has been witnessed in China has been closely linked with the amount of energy consumed. However, the extreme use of energy by Chinese alongside pollution has put the country under a big threat. Due to this, the country has decided to take measures because they are not ready to put their environment at risk. The plans are underway to ensure the amount of energy used is lowered and emissions of carbon in the next four years. China managed to reduce the amount of energy consumed by 19.1 % in 2010 and this is close 20%, which is their target.
In conclusion, the GDP of China is almost that of United States. If the rate at which Chinese GDP growing is anything to go by, it will be the highest in 2020. The rise in GDP is closely associated to high number of imports and exports. China’s improvement in communication sector has also contributed a lot to the growth of its economy. The country has some of the biggest mobile makers in the world (Chen & Wolf, 2001). Crime rate in Chinese town is growing at a high speed just like the GDP. China is known for consuming a lot of energy, which has helped a lot in the GDP growth that was witnessed recently. If this trend continues, it might put the environment of China at risk due to carbon emissions. However, the country has taken measures of reducing its energy consumption, and the situation will be different by 2015.
References:
Chen, S., Wolf, C. (2001).China, the United States, and the global economy, Issue 1300
China, the United States, and the Global Economy, Shuxun Chen. Texas: Rand Corporation
Hoffmann, W., Enright, M. (2008). China into the future: making sense of the world's most
dynamic economy. New York: John Wiley and Sons
Rawski, T. (2001). What's happening to China's GDP statistics? Shaghai: T.G. Rawski
