by derrickpetzold on 5/4/11, 12:36 AM
Spain became ridiculously wealthy after its conquest of the Aztecs and Incas at the beginning of the 16th century but by the end of the century it was bankrupt. I am not saying that China would be as foolish as the Spaniards in squandering their wealth but I am saying there is precedence for it and it does seem like retaining wealth is far more difficult then creating it. Japan would be another case in point. It will be very interesting to see what China's strategy is. It does look like they are reaching the end of the road on their current path especially with America's financial markets being what they are.
by louislouis on 5/3/11, 11:50 PM
Holding $3 Trillion in boring American gov securities seems like a safe way to shelter itself from price fluctuations if the FED decides to play with the interest rates.
by gvb on 5/3/11, 11:48 PM
China can buy almost anything for a price—but almost nothing for today’s price.In a way, they have become too big to succeed.
by ChuckMcM on 5/3/11, 10:43 PM
It is good to keep this in mind. China as VC of last resort? They could fund the equivalent of the entire 1995 - 2001 tech bubble.
by shareme on 5/3/11, 11:41 PM
No mention of the way China subsides its own banking system in such a way that $3 Trillion in reserves is somewhat illusionary ..pet project disasters alone are $1 trillion counting the high speed rail disaster..and that is before factoring in the banks that China is holding up to prevent them from closing..