Globalisation In China Case Study

1439 Words3 Pages

The rapid integration of the world’s economic systems through the breaking down of barriers to trade, finance, investment, technology and labour around the world has had profound effects on the Chinese economy. The world ’s largest economy has embraced the process of globalisation through trade liberalisation, financial market reform and the ‘open door policy’ therefore enabling China to receive the benefits of globalisation. This process has stimulated economic growth leading to sustained increases in per capita incomes, improvements in quality of life and significant reductions in poverty and unemployment. However, the effects of globalisation and rapid economic growth have come at a cost, resulting in significant environmental degradation …show more content…

Trade liberalisation and the reduction in bureaucracy has enabled overseas firms to enter the Chinese market to take advantage of cheap and vast labour, creating millions of jobs. However, the privatisation of state-owned enterprises in the face of international competition as well as economic restructuring has also simultaneously led to mass job losses, especially in rural areas, posing a challenge to the Chinese economy and the government. During the period 2009 to 2015, China’s urban unemployment rate averaged 4.8% which is lower than the world average of around 7%. However, the real unemployment situation is likely to be more serious as migrant workers and newly graduated students are not included in government statistics on unemployment. As well as this, China has had historically low levels of unemployment, thus, a trend of increasing unemployment levels indicates a worsening situation. We can see the extent to which the impacts of globalisation have had on China, through historical unemployment statistics. In 2009, unemployment reached a 30 year high of 5.4% reflecting the impacts of the Global Financial Crisis and highlighting that China is now increasingly exposed to external shocks. The movement away from labour intensive industries (i.e. manufacturing and agriculture) and the effort towards service based industries, due to the process of …show more content…

American economist, Rostow through his ‘Stages of Economic Development’ demonstrates that economies may ignore environmental quality in their quest for growth. This notion is true in China, with government and private firms using unsustainable practices in order to maximise globalisation opportunities. China suffers mostly from chronic air and water pollution caused by both the demand for energy (i.e. coal mines) as well as the process of manufacturing. This effect on the Chinese economy is quantified through China’s emissions, which in 2010, was 8,286 million metric tonnes, 35% higher than the next uppermost emitter, the United States. China is also home to 16 out of 20 most polluted cities in the world. Consequences for not cleaning up the environment will not just be a health crisis but an economic one. The Chinese government is now recognising and addressing the environmental problems which have occurred due to both rapid economic growth and industrialisation. It has set targets which aim at reducing pollution levels with $6.6b committed in spending in order to achieve such targets. Such examples include investment in nuclear power instead of coal, hydroelectricity (i.e. Three Gorges Dam) as well as new stringent environmental laws. It is hoped that new regulations and investment will lead the way for renewable energy and a sustainable

Open Document