Primary Drivers of the Chinese Economy (2024)

As of 2021, China has the second-largest economy in the world with a GDP of $17.7 trillion, behind the United States GDP of $22.9 trillion. If the economy were represented in purchasing power parity (PPP), China edges out America as the largest economy with a purchasing power of more than $27.3 trillion.

How did China go from a poor society, devastated by World War Two and its own civil war by the mid-20th century, to the number two economy today? After decades of economic stagnation and setbacks under Communist rule, China began to open itself to international trade and liberalize the economy when it established diplomatic and trade relations with the U.S. in 1979. As China's subsequent export growth fueled the growth of manufacturing and urbanization, China rose to be a major global economic power over the next four decades.

China has faced criticism about how its economy has been able to sustain an average annual growth of almost 10%, though this has slowed in the last few years, with a growth of 8.1% in 2021, still within China's growth targets. Namely, the government has been accused of manipulating the currency to keep Chinese exports attractive and of not disciplining companies that engage in intellectual property theft.

Key Takeaways

  • China's economy has grown to one of the largest and most powerful in the world over the past few decades.
  • Driven by industrial production and manufacturing exports, China's GDP is actually now the largest in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) equivalence.
  • Despite this growth, China's economy remains strictly controlled by its government where there are accusations of corruption, unfair dealings, and falsified data.

Industrial Growth

Like most countries looking to develop their economies, China’s first step was to build up its heavy industry. Today, China is the world's leader in manufacturing and produces almost half of the world’s steel.

China’s mining industry extracts coal, iron ore, salt, oil, gas, and gold. To reduce China’s dependence on coal, the country is moving towards more renewable resources and plans to increase its natural gas use in the coming years. China also has multiple oil reserves, as well as natural gas deposits that have yet to be fully explored.

The country is also a good candidate for hydroelectricity production, and in 2012, the Three Gorges Dam was completed and is now a major producer of electricity for the southern cities of China (including Shanghai).

Manufacturing Revenue

Most Americans know that China is a manufacturing powerhouse. Besides its large textile manufacturing sector, the economy also supplies machinery, cement, food processing, transportation devices (trains, planes, and automobiles), consumer goods, and electronics.

Not only does China have many domestic firms that create hardware and software, but the country is also a leading assembler of foreign electronics. The Chinesesoftware and IT industrygrew by 10.8%from May 2021 to May 2022, generating Q1 revenue of approximately $415 billion.

Similarly, China produces automobiles in factories owned by both domestic and foreign companies. However, most automobiles, domestic- and foreign-branded, are purchased by people in China, a country that had nearly 300 million vehicles in 2021. Chinese vehicle sales increased in 2021 by 3.8% to 26.2 million units.

The Chinese automobile industry is criticized for IP theft and for a bad safety record with cars produced by domestic firms. The majority of cars manufactured by Chinese companies are exported to Africa, South America, the Middle East, or Russia. Because of China’s unique distribution and sales methods, car dealerships and salespeople make a high margin on each vehicle sale.

Large Production Pharmaceuticals

The Chinese pharmaceutical industry is, like the rest of China, growing at a fast pace. China’s drug distribution system is multi-phased: drugs pass through various tiers and expensive middlepeople before arriving at hospitals and pharmacies. This industry is, again, plagued with criticisms of IP theft.

Domestic firms are the majority of the market but international companies like Pfizer (PFE), GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Novartis (NVS), and AstraZeneca (AZN) also have a presence. With China reforming and regulating the pharmaceutical industry (increasing OTC access and enforcing patents), there is a high potential for investment growth in this area.

Chinese Consumerism

While once a country with rationing and consumer good shortages, after economic liberalization,China can be a consumer paradise for the few with means and a love for luxury goods. China is home to some of the largest shopping centers in the world, and, in addition to wholesaling, retail contributed $6.5 trillion to GDP.

Companies like Alibaba (BABA) have given a big boost to retail and e-commerce. Alibaba and JD.com'scombined Singles Day 2021 sale saw a record-breaking $139 billion of sales in just one day.

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic n 2021, travel &tourism in China contributed only $14.2 billionto the Chinese GDP. Other services that are big in China include transportation, real estate, and construction.

China's Economic Concerns

While China’s growth seemed unstoppable at one point, there are obvious cracks in the economy that have slowed it down. First off, the country is under fire for the amount of non-renewable resources it burns through each year. With China already considered a large polluter and emitter of greenhouse gases, the expected increase in coal usage is troubling to some.

Next, China is home to rampant corruption. The national government is actively trying to stamp it out in an effort to make the country more business-friendly for Westerners and to avoid the economic and business inefficiencies that come from corruption.

Finally, there’s the problem of underemployment and inflation in China. Chinese farmers on small plots of land are marginally useful and, in an efficient market, would be unemployed. Although inflation in June 2022 was a manageable 2.5%, the last 20 years have seen the inflation rate vary wildly, a concern for businesses wanting to invest in the country.

The Bottom Line

China has the firstor second-largest economy in the world depending on whether you’re looking at GDP or PPP. However, perhaps significantly, the country is not nearly as developed as other countries in the top 10. Government spending is a key driver of growth which has over the last few years led to indiscriminate construction. Even with the largest population on earth, China struggled to find buyers for real estate in its ghost towns. But the government's latest agenda focuses on stimulus to reinvigorate economic activity and if that happens the country has huge room to grow.

Primary Drivers of the Chinese Economy (2024)

FAQs

What is the primary driver of China's economy? ›

Driven by industrial production and manufacturing exports, China's GDP is actually now the largest in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) equivalence. Despite this growth, China's economy remains strictly controlled by its government where there are accusations of corruption, unfair dealings, and falsified data.

What were the three reasons for rise of Chinese economy? ›

Factors responsible for its rising economy are as follows:
  • (i) Use of Soviet Model:
  • China accepted the Soviet model and depended on its resources. ...
  • (ii) Development of Industrial Economy:
  • China employed all its resources for developing an industrial economy. ...
  • (iii) Relation with the United States of America:

How did China become a strong economy? ›

During the 1950s, all of China's individual household farms were collectivized into large communes. To support rapid industrialization, the central government undertook large-scale investments in physical and human capital during the 1960s and 1970s.

What was China's economy based on? ›

As a result, China has the world's fastest-growing major economy, with growth rates averaging 10% over 30 years. Currently, many scholars consider the Chinese economic model as an example of authoritarian capitalism, state capitalism or party-state capitalism.

What is the primary driver of economic growth? ›

Increases in capital goods, labor force, technology, and human capital can all contribute to economic growth. Economic growth is commonly measured in terms of the increase in aggregated market value of additional goods and services produced, using estimates such as GDP.

What are the drivers of economy? ›

A driver, in finance and economics, refers to some key factor that has a large influence on some outcome of interest. Macro drivers are influential fiscal, natural, or geopolitical variables or events that broadly affect a regional or national economy, and are used in top-down analysis.

What two factors led to the rise of the Chinese economy? ›

Some of them are:
  • China established relations with USA and ended its isolations and took major policy decisions during 1970s.
  • China privatized all its sectors one by one. ...
  • China undertook four modernizations in the fields of agriculture, technology, industry and military.
Aug 30, 2020

What is one of the main reasons China flourished economically? ›

The economy of Song China flourished due to increased production, expanding trade networks, and innovations in agriculture and manufacturing.

What are the four factors responsible for the rise of the Chinese economy? ›

Four factors that led to the rise of the Chinese economy are market socialism, large-scale production, cheap cost of production, and privatization.

When did China become economically powerful? ›

Since China began to open up and reform its economy in 1978, GDP growth has averaged over 9 percent a year, and more than 800 million people have lifted themselves out of poverty. There have also been significant improvements in access to health, education, and other services over the same period.

Why type of economy does China have? ›

While initially founded as a socialist state with a centrally planned economy, it now has a mixed economy, described by its government as “Socialism with Chinese characteristics”.

How did China get so big? ›

As regards to size: Around half of China's current territory has come from the conquests and capability of the Manchus to successfully integrate and subdue the steppe via their marriage alliances with Mongol tribes and the final triumph of the Eastern Steppe over the western steppe.

What are the key features of the Chinese economy? ›

The Chinese economy has the second-highest GDP in the world, surpassed only by the United States. Manufacturing, industry, and construction are referred to as the secondary sector and are also the most important sector of the economy due to their significant contribution to the country's GDP.

Is China's economy based on capitalism? ›

The CCP maintains that despite the co-existence of private capitalists and entrepreneurs with public and collective enterprise, China is not a capitalist country because the party retains control over the direction of the country, maintaining its course of socialist development.

How strong is China's economy? ›

In its World Economic Outlook released last week, the International Monetary Fund said China is “rebounding strongly” following the reopening of its economy. The country's GDP will grow 5.2% this year and 5.1% in 2024, it predicted.

What is the biggest driver of economic gain? ›

The biggest driver of economic gain—the force that sustains long-term economic growth—is technological progress. Technological progress increases labor productivity—that is, it increases how much work can be done in the same amount of time.

What are the four main drivers of the economy? ›

Economists generally agree that economic development and growth are influenced by four factors: human resources, physical capital, natural resources and technology. Highly developed countries have governments that focus on these areas.

What are the three key driving forces of economic growth? ›

There are three main factors that drive economic growth:
  • Accumulation of capital stock.
  • Increases in labor inputs, such as workers or hours worked.
  • Technological advancement.
Jun 1, 2015

Which is a key driver of global economic growth? ›

To anticipate the main results of this study, we find the accumulation of physical as well as human capital to be the main drivers of economic growth.

What are 2 major economic activities in China? ›

Manufacturing, services and agriculture are the largest sectors of the Chinese economy – employing the majority of the population and making the largest contributions to GDP.

What is the main cause of China's recent rapid economic growth quizlet? ›

What was the main cause of economic growth? The main cause for China's rapid economic growth in the 1980's was it's change from a planned economy to a free market economy. This happened when Mao Zedong died.

What helped China to develop the world's second largest economy? ›

The country's economic success has benefited greatly from a large population with relatively low labor costs and a huge market, but also an efficient and strong central government.

What has caused China to become a transition economy? ›

After 35 years of extraordinarily rapid growth, the Chinese economy is undergoing a major transition from export-led growth to a model increasingly driven by consumption and services, with less emphasis on debt-financed public investment.

How did China's economy grow so fast? ›

During the 1950s, all of China's individual household farms were collectivized into large communes. To support rapid industrialization, the central government undertook large-scale investments in physical and human capital during the 1960s and 1970s.

What are the 4 most important strategies for economic growth in China's project? ›

China's top five key reform areas are: (1) the “new macroeconomic policy responses” to stabilize near-term growth, (2) “transform the economic growth pattern” to further boost consumption, (3) improve “competition” to allow the market to play the basic role and promote private sector involvement, (4) promote “ ...

What are the 4 main factors that influence economic growth within a country? ›

The four main factors of economic growth are land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship.

What is China's economic miracle? ›

The Chinese economic reform or Chinese economic miracle, also known domestically as Reform and Opening-up (Chinese: 改革开放; pinyin: Gǎigé kāifàng) refers to a variety of economic reforms termed "socialism with Chinese characteristics" and "socialist market economy" in the People's Republic of China (PRC) that began in ...

Why is China's inflation rate so low? ›

Tighter Monetary Policy

Officials in Beijing often like to point to the tighter monetary policies they pursued during the coronavirus pandemic as a key reason for their low rates of inflation.

Why is China so important to the global economy? ›

It is one of the world's fastest growing countries and is the tenth largest exporter. China is also a significant recipient of foreign aid and a major borrower on international capital markets.

How does China's economy differ from the US economy? ›

As per projections by IMF for 2021, United States is leading by $6,033 bn or 1.36 times on an exchange rate basis. The economy of China is Int. $3,982 billion or 1.18x of the US on purchasing power parity basis. According to estimates by World Bank, China's gdp was approx 11% of the US in 1960, but in 2019 it is 67%.

Is China's economy better than us? ›

At the beginning of 2023, the U.S.'s real GDP stood at around $20 trillion and China's at around $16 trillion—leaving a gap of $4 trillion.

Is China richer than the US? ›

The United States is the richest country in the world with the highest GDP, as of 2021. China is the second richest country in the world with a $17.734 trillion GDP.

Why is China's population declining? ›

Why this is happening. The population decline is partially a result of China's one-child policy, which for more than 35 years limited couples to only having one child. Women caught going against the policy were often subject to forced abortions, heavy fines, and eviction.

Why is China so overcrowded? ›

Overpopulation in China began after World War II in 1949, when Chinese families were encouraged to have as many children as possible in hopes of bringing more money to the country, building a better army, and producing more food.

Why did China's population grow so quickly? ›

Over the next three centuries, with the expansion of rice cultivation in central and south China, the country's food supply steadily grew, allowing its population to grow as well. By 1100, the population reached 100 million. China was certainly the largest country in the world at the time.

What is the economic summary of China? ›

China Economic Data
20172021
GDP per capita (USD)8,79412,613
GDP (CNY bn)83,204114,924
Economic Growth (Nominal GDP, ann. var. %)11.513.4
Economic Growth (GDP, ann. var. %)6.98.4
34 more rows
May 23, 2023

What does China manufacture the most? ›

The great bulk of China's exports consists of manufactured goods, of which electrical and electronic machinery and equipment and clothing, textiles, and footwear are by far the most important.

What is China's economy driven by? ›

Driven by industrial production and manufacturing exports, China's GDP is actually now the largest in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) equivalence. Despite this growth, China's economy remains strictly controlled by its government where there are accusations of corruption, unfair dealings, and falsified data.

How did China become so economically successful? ›

During the 1950s, all of China's individual household farms were collectivized into large communes. To support rapid industrialization, the central government undertook large-scale investments in physical and human capital during the 1960s and 1970s.

What is the most capitalist country? ›

Singapore

How much money does US owe to China? ›

Top Foreign Holders of U.S. Debt
RankCountryU.S. Treasury Holdings
1🇯🇵 Japan$1,076B
2🇨🇳 China$867B
3🇬🇧 United Kingdom$655B
4🇧🇪 Belgium$354B
6 more rows
Mar 24, 2023

Is China in a debt crisis? ›

China's $23 Trillion Local Debt Crisis Threatens Xi's Economy - Bloomberg.

Does China have debt? ›

Impact on China's economy

The growing debt has cast a shadow over the country's economic potential for the foreseeable future. Moreover, the transition toward a consumption-driven growth model has yet to yield significant results.

What is China the largest producer of? ›

It is the world's largest producer of wheat and rice.

How much of China's economy is dependent on exports? ›

The latest value from 2021 is 20.04 percent.

What is China's biggest export? ›

The top Chinese exports are broadcasting equipment, computers, and integrated circuits. In fact, China exported $223 billion worth of broadcasting equipment alone in 2021. China also exported $156 billion worth of computers in 2021.

What is the largest contributor to China's GDP? ›

The construction industry in China has contributed significantly towards the country's economic growth over the past several decades. Construction can influence economic growth in several ways.

What is China's main export to the US? ›

China Is a Major Source of U.S. Imports of Textile Products

In 2021, the U.S. imports of $50.3 billion of Textile products constituted 32.6% of the total U.S. imports of those commodities.

Why is China producing everything? ›

In addition to its low labor costs, China has become known as "the world's factory" because of its strong business ecosystem, lack of regulatory compliance, low taxes and duties, and competitive currency practices.

Does China rely on US exports? ›

China has shifted purchases away from the United States to reduce its reliance on US suppliers, but US farmers remain highly dependent on the Chinese market. In 2022, around 19 percent of US agriculture exports went to China, up from 14 percent in 2017 and 13 percent in 2009.

Does China owe the US money? ›

As of January 2023, the five countries owning the most US debt are Japan ($1.1 trillion), China ($859 billion), the United Kingdom ($668 billion), Belgium ($331 billion), and Luxembourg ($318 billion).

What would happen if the US stopped importing from China? ›

This data suggests that if U.S. hypothetically stops buying Chinese goods, China's export will suffer a 18% loss, which accounts for 18%*20% = 3.6% of China's GDP. It is unlikely a 3.6% loss in GDP will collapse the Chinese economy.

What percentage of US food comes from China? ›

Despite the rapid growth, less than 1 percent of the U.S. food supply comes from China. For a few specific items, like apple juice, garlic, canned mandarin oranges, fish, and shrimp, China is a major supplier.

What food does the US export to China? ›

China was the top destination for U.S. agricultural products in 2022 at a record 19.2% of the value, led by increased purchases of soybeans, cotton and beef. Canada, Mexico and Japan rounded out the top four at 16%, 14% and 8%, respectively, of the 2022 U.S. export total.

What is America's number one export? ›

The most recent exports are led by Refined Petroleum ($83.3B), Petroleum Gas ($70.9B), Crude Petroleum ($67.6B), Cars ($55.4B), and Integrated Circuits ($51.3B). The most common destination for the exports of United States are Canada ($259B), Mexico ($247B), China ($151B), Japan ($71.8B), and South Korea ($66.4B).

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