China Passes U.S. to Become the World’s Biggest Trading Nation

[gambit]

No. It's economic reason. Freedom is just a facade for its collapse.

Ok.. I take my statement back. People do need freedom. But this need rank lower than the basic need of human, such as food, clothing, shelter, security. Once a man achieve this, they would desire freedom and finally, self awareness.

Basic needs and the desire for freedoms beyond those needs are in a constant push/pull relationship.

The first freedom anyone want is the right and freedom to do things to my 'stuff' as I see fit because I believe, rightly or wrongly, what is best for me. No one outside of the monastery is ever satisfied with just having basic needs met. So the most important, if not the top priority, item for any dictatorship is to control access and availability to those basic needs. Keep the people in a constant state of near starvation, physically and figuratively. As long as the people is in a persistent state of looking and hoarding whatever they can of those basic needs, most will not have the chance to look beyond those basic needs. Whatever creative energy I may have, I must direct it towards meeting those basic needs. Any wonder why something like the microwave oven came from a free society and not the Soviet Union or China?

 

[faithfulguy]

Basic needs and the desire for freedoms beyond those needs are in a constant push/pull relationship.

The first freedom anyone want is the right and freedom to do things to my 'stuff' as I see fit because I believe, rightly or wrongly, what is best for me. No one outside of the monastery is ever satisfied with just having basic needs met. So the most important, if not the top priority, item for any dictatorship is to control access and availability to those basic needs. Keep the people in a constant state of near starvation, physically and figuratively. As long as the people is in a persistent state of looking and hoarding whatever they can of those basic needs, most will not have the chance to look beyond those basic needs. Whatever creative energy I may have, I must direct it towards meeting those basic needs. Any wonder why something like the microwave oven came from a free society and not the Soviet Union or China?

Actually, China is in a fast highway in pursuit of happiness. As long as there is money to be made, no one would care about "freedom" So in China, its the high development rate that is keeping the government and the nation in tact. As long as the standard of living doubles every 15 years, no one would feel the need to have democracy. Why the need to change the political system in order to vote if the government is doing what the majority wants and this "communist" government would be voted in in regardless. So the CCP is in good hand as long as the Chinese economy soars.

Until the Chinese economy tanks or become truly rich, no need to talk about democracy for China. And they are doing just fine.

 

[phylumchordata]

China is a class topper that doesn't have very good public relations and likes to live alone under heavy books, while US is an all rounder who is popular and heads schools affairs of all sorts.

 

[fallstuff]

Freedom means a whole squat when you got an empty stomach.

 

[beijingwalker]

old news,I posted it last year.

 

[gpit]

If america is loosing the economy to china they will lost the arm race to china right? and if they lost the arm race then their position as a biggest superpower is in danger too do you agreed

Not quite definite.

More than a thousand year ago, Song Dynasty of China had far superior economy than Mongolian tribes all combined. In fact, the ratio of Song GDP over that of the whole world was far more than anytime USA's over current world's. Yet, Song China was rampaged by Mongolia horses.

Mongolians happened to use their advantage against Song’s week point: the military system, and caused the world civilization to retreat at least a few centuries.

The Chinese must learn the lesson from their own history, and refrain from being sumptuous/arrogant and keep moving forward.

 

[beijingwalker]

The Economist: China has surpassed U.S. in many economic indices
December 4, 5:54 pm

The Economist magazine pointed out in a recent article that in the 21 different economic indices including manufacturing output, export, fixed investment, China has surpassed U.S. by more than half.


http://www.defence.pk/forums/world-affairs/225128-economist-china-has-surpassed-u-s-many-economic-indices.html

 

[Pakistanisage]

Even though I am an Amercan Citizen, I have to admit that while America is in a decline, China is rising fast as an Economic Powerhouse as well as a Military Superpower.

That is just a fact and ground reality and I don't see that trend changing in near future.

 

[beijingwalker]

Not quite definite.

More than a thousand year ago, Song Dynasty of China had far superior economy than Mongolian tribes all combined. In fact, the ratio of Song GDP over that of the whole world was far more than anytime USA's over current world's. Yet, Song China was rampaged by Mongolia horses.

Mongolians happened to use their advantage against Song’s week point: the military system, and caused the world civilization to retreat at least a few centuries.

The Chinese must learn the lesson from their own history, and refrain from being sumptuous/arrogant and keep moving forward.

that's true only in cold weapon time when savage nomads can always bully rich and prosperous agricultural societies,but not now.

 

[Hasbara Buster]

There's not much to argue about. It is obvious that this century is the last western century, and whether this 'end' is now or in 2060 is unimportant and irrelevant because even a period of 50 years is insignificant in human history.

 

[RIMPAC]

What we need is military power. Without military power we will remain a paper tiger. The USSR only had military power that was a rival to the US and that was enough to be a superpower. Japan has an advanced economy and advanced technology but they are not a superpower because they don't have a massive military power like the USSR had.

America has all the hard power bases covered from economic, financial, technological and military power. Those things combine to give America great political power over everyone else.
But America also has soft power with their cultural and media power.

America is the only one with all around power, with massive hard and soft power.

 

[Wombat]

China surpassed the U.S. to become the world’s biggest trading nation last year as measured by the sum of exports and imports, ending the U.S. supremacy in global commerce that emerged after the end of World War II in 1945.

U.S. exports and imports last year totaled $3.82 trillion, the U.S. Commerce Department said yesterday. China’s customs administration reported last month that the country’s total trade in 2012 amounted to $3.87 trillion. China had a $231.1 billion annual trade surplus while the U.S. had a trade deficit of $727.9 billion.


China Passes U.S. to Become the World

Thanks for the article ..


Wow!!! I see lots of people making premature remarks on how China has toppled US..

The only figure worrying is US trade deficit not the fact it china has produce more than US...

Fanatic title but doesn’t mean much!!

Let me explain why

With creation of globalization ( by the west whom you all so love to hate) , the whole world has become a global village , where if I have money , I can create what I want ( practically possible ) , where I want and when I want as cheap as possible .

Its known fact the good from china is cheaper than USA,

So large group of companies ( mostly western countries – including a great percentage of American companies ) have moved their manufacturing from west to east to make their good cheaper and sell for more profits – an example is Apple, they design in California and manufacture in china to sell it back to American and rest of the world.

So a very HUGH percentage of china's manufacturing is driven by so called outsourcing contracts, which is directly related by cheap labour and pegged currency which keeps manufacturing cost down .

The US exported 1.851 trillion a year while china does 1.904 trillion , the products made in US are made by American companies ( even though goods made in US aren’t as cheap as china ) or companies who are not so concerned about so called outsourcing …

So now you get my drift !!!!

The danger is when companies moves away from china in the future perhaps to Thailand, Vietnam or back home.. This will leave a very large hole in china’s manufacturing capability.

I love, how false reporting sways you people !!

 

[eddieInUK]

When chinese live a life like Europeans, we can talk about something more. Hopefully China can be like that soon.

 

[Solomon2]

China’s emergence as the biggest global trading nation gives it increasing influence, threatening to disrupt regional trading blocs as it becomes the most important commercial partner for countries including Germany -

I wouldn't use the word, "disrupt". Perhaps, "reduce in importance" or "make irrelevant".

China was last considered the leading economy during the height of the Qing dynasty.

The "norm" of the past 4,000 years is for China to have the biggest economy.

...the Qing Empire -- unlike rising Britain -- didn’t focus on trade. The Emperor Qianlong told King George III in a 1793 letter that “we possess all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and I have no use for your country’s manufactures.”

This willful blindness was a huge factor in China's eclipse. Nobody can say the Brits didn't try to correct matters gently before hammering it in with guns.

China’s trade figures in January and February are distorted by the week-long Lunar New Year holiday that fell in January of last year and started today.

All too often Western commentators forget about this. Leave to Bloomberg to get it right!

China Passes U.S. to Become the World

 

[northeast]

that's true only in cold weapon time when savage nomads can always bully rich and prosperous agricultural societies,but not now.

It's still true.The only difference is war is more depend on military technology(other technology doesn't matter at all)than military training nowadays.

Look at North korea vs south korea or Israel vs Arabian countries.a coward country like song dynasty won't become a superpower in any time no matter how wealthy it is.It's just a fat pig that waiting to be eaten by a hungry wolf.

Only those country which invest heavily in their military force and willing to show how powerful they are to the world deserve to become a superpower.
Countries like japan which has a big economy but a relatively weaker militarily has very small influence in world politics，and countries like china who don't want to show its power and spend a little more than 1% of its GDP as military budget don't deserve to be call as superpower.In fact,outside of east asia,china has very limited impact.
China is just a regional power right now.and I don't think China would become a super power due to its coward confucius culture .