• eestileib@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    6
    arrow-down
    3
    ·
    20 hours ago

    It’s like China has a few smart people left in their government!

    They’ve fucked up plenty, their asset bubble is going to be crippling just like everybody else, but overall they are in a vastly better position than the US to advance their imperialistic goals.

    • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      16
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      20 hours ago

      I don’t see any reason why their asset bubble will be crippling. The reason it’s crippling in capitalist economies of the west is cause the government is expected to bail out the investors. In China, they just let these companies fail and then nationalize their assets if needed. If you look at the whole real estate bubble, there was never any crash there precisely because it was a handful of rich investors who ended up eating the loss instead of it being socialized.

      • eestileib@lemmy.blahaj.zone
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        18 hours ago

        As I understand it, housing speculation has filled a similar role to 401(k)s in the US, the relatively illiquid asset that “always goes up”.

        People will feel a lot poorer when their apartment loses 70% of its value, and I don’t think that’s exactly the same as, say, a big leveraged builder going out of business.

        You’re right of course the US won’t let one rich man go broke so it is worse there.

        • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          9
          ·
          18 hours ago

          Chinese household savings hit a record high in 2024 https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-today-dow-jones-bank-earnings-01-12-2024/card/chinese-household-savings-hit-another-record-high-xqyky00IsIe357rtJb4j

          90% of families in the country own their home giving China one of the highest home ownership rates in the world. What’s more is that 80% of these homes are owned outright, without mortgages or any other leans. https://www.forbes.com/sites/wadeshepard/2016/03/30/how-people-in-china-afford-their-outrageously-expensive-homes

          Student debt in China is virtually non-existent. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jlim/2016/08/29/why-china-doesnt-have-a-student-debt-problem/

          It’s pretty clear that there is very little negative impact from housing prices falling on the vast majority of the population. And it’s great news for young people who are moving from countryside to the cities and can now afford cheap housing.

          The key reason why 2008 was a clusterfuck was because Obama decided to bail out the bankers and fuck the working class in the process.

          • eestileib@lemmy.blahaj.zone
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            1
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            17 hours ago

            I used to own a house free and clear. If the value dropped by half, I would still feel a lot poorer.

            When the price of assets held as a store of value drops, the holders of those assets are impoverished. That’s already bad.

            Now, when a fall in the price of assets held as a store of value drops, and that triggers a series of defaults that ripples across the financial system, that’s even worse.

            I can’t see from the outside the degree to which Chinese society has been financialized, but I’m betting it’s more than the CCP wants to let on.

            • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              6
              ·
              16 hours ago

              I mean, literally the first link in my reply is saying that household savings in China are at record high levels. 🤷

              When the cost of hosing, the basic necessity for living, drops that is in fact a very good thing. And the record high savings number clearly demonstrates that housing is not a primary investment vehicle for majority of the population. As Xi put it, hosing is for living. This was an intentional policy choice and a correct one.

              If you think that Chinese society has been financialized then you’re utterly clueless on the subject and have no business discussing it.