https://www.scmp.com/rss/322521/feed Jonathan Woetzel is head of the McKinsey Global Institute in Asia. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com China’s inexorable economic rise, and Japan’s industrial revolution before it, have long attracted superlatives. But beyond these economic giants, there is much dynamism elsewhere in Asia, too. Consider that, in Bangladesh, manufacturing as a share of its economy has jumped from 16 to 22 per cent in just 10 years. Or look at Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, which is well on its way to becoming an innovation hub. From a standing start, the city has attracted US$2.6 billion of foreign direct... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3027705/its-not-just-about-china-asian-economies-are-integrating-rapidly?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3027705/its-not-just-about-china-asian-economies-are-integrating-rapidly?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Sep 2019 03:00:09 +0000 Could the Korean peninsula be the world’s next epicentre of change? Today North Korea has an estimated gross domestic product of US$28 billion, similar in size to Cameroon. And yet, by 2050, it is possible that a more economically integrated Korean peninsula could range in size from US$4 to US$6.4 trillion, with the North accounting for around a quarter of that total. That would put the Korean peninsula, if measured as a single economy, roughly on par with Japan, Germany and the UK – and... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/united-states/article/2168144/how-north-korea-could-be-economic-powerhouse?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/united-states/article/2168144/how-north-korea-could-be-economic-powerhouse?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Oct 2018 04:00:15 +0000 China is facing the difficult task of managing a soft economic landing, after decades of spectacular expansion. Naysayers abound, but never mind them. China has an advantage that other countries in today’s troubled global economy lack: a clear path forward. If China carries out a sustained, comprehensive effort to raise productivity, it can address its growth challenges, reduce the risks of financial crisis and complete its transition to a consumption-driven, high-income economy with a large and... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1937553/five-trillion-reasons-china-push-ahead-economic-reforms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1937553/five-trillion-reasons-china-push-ahead-economic-reforms?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Apr 2016 09:00:15 +0000 Every month there’s another food scandal in China. Sewer oil. Lamb seasoned with rat. Exploding melons. And now tainted Western hamburgers and fast food is the latest. In our view, this is all to be expected. If you are in the food or restaurant business in China, you are almost certainly going to have a scandal. It’s practically inevitable. And it’s an opportunity you shouldn’t miss. Food scandals are a major concern of Chinese consumers. In 2013, McKinsey research found Chinese residents are... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1571442/its-shame-let-china-food-scandal-go-waste?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1571442/its-shame-let-china-food-scandal-go-waste?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Aug 2014 10:15:00 +0000 There has been an eerie calm in Chinese real estate for the past couple months. People have noticed that real estate developers are cutting prices. They have noticed that banks are pulling back on lending. They have noticed that China’s first bond defaults since 1997 have occurred. It’s like everyone has stopped (or at least slowed) the real estate game they have been happily playing for the past decade and are quietly re-assessing the situation. In October 2008, those of us in Dubai noticed a... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1517258/china-real-estate-now-dubai-crash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1517258/china-real-estate-now-dubai-crash?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 May 2014 08:44:07 +0000 Jonathan Woetzel is the “go-to guru” for Chinese urbanization. He is a senior partner at McKinsey & Company and the co-Chair of the Urban China Initiative, a thinktank. Whether it is Chinese city officials, multinationals or government officials in Riyadh and Moscow, he is the person everyone calls for this subject. I interviewed him about the current state of Chinese urbanization – and in particular about what people are getting wrong. Jeff: Looking at Chinese urbanization today, what are the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1508267/what-everyone-getting-wrong-about-urbanization-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1508267/what-everyone-getting-wrong-about-urbanization-china?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 May 2014 07:20:51 +0000 A couple weeks ago, one of China’s top economic planners discussed plans to integrate Beijing, Tianjin and parts of Hebei into a new mega-city. This new Beijing mega-city would contain approximately 100 million people and is already being referred to as “Jing-Jin-Ji”.  We thought we would point out eight cool “likely facts” about the new Beijing mega-city – and Chinese urbanisation in general. By 2025, Beijing will have over 7 million households earning over US$20,000 per year. This will... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1495847/eight-cool-facts-about-new-100-million-person-beijing-megacity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1495847/eight-cool-facts-about-new-100-million-person-beijing-megacity?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Apr 2014 07:34:29 +0000 Just one year after its split from Mazda, Ford’s recent performance in China is starting to turn heads. In December 2012, the Chinese government approved the split up of the three-way joint venture between Ford, Mazda and Chang’an Automobile. This resulted in the newly created Chang’an Ford joint venture which went on to sell an impressive 935,000 cars in China in 2013. That was a 49% increase year-over-year. And is up from only around 400,000 as recently as 2010. Post-divorce Chang’an Ford is... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1483956/post-divorce-changan-ford-has-lost-weight-and-looking-good?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1483956/post-divorce-changan-ford-has-lost-weight-and-looking-good?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 16 Apr 2014 07:07:20 +0000 You can’t go a week without hearing of a new acquisition by Baidu, Alibaba or Tencent. While China’s Internet giants have been doing acquisitions for years, the last three months can best be described as a frenzy. Tencent’s recent announcements have been impressive – including: They are buying 15% of Leju, an online property agency, for $180 million. They are buying 15% of e-commerce website JD.com for $215 million. They are buying 28% South Korean mobile game developer CJ Games for... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1463176/five-drivers-chinas-internet-deal-frenzy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1463176/five-drivers-chinas-internet-deal-frenzy?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 02 Apr 2014 08:26:13 +0000 This week, China’s big four state-owned banks are set to announce their 2013 financial results. And the numbers, if predictions are accurate, should show a significant slowing in earnings growth across the board. Likely 11% year over year growth for a combined net income of approximately $130 billion. So solid growth in a very big number, but also their lowest growth rate since the 2008 financial crisis. This big drop-off is a good symbol of the myriad forces that are currently buffeting Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1458384/why-chinese-state-owned-banks-are-now-eye-storm?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1458384/why-chinese-state-owned-banks-are-now-eye-storm?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Mar 2014 04:42:58 +0000