The nation that put Mao on the map and made Communism a religion is now one of the world’s most formidable capitalist engines, with a roaring annual growth rate near 8 percent.
The state still has its stake in economic endeavors, but China’s burgeoning private sector is creating so much wealth that even the Communists are becoming entrepreneurs.
But the story of China’s booming economy is a tale of two countries: one where urban residents reap the rewards and rural dwellers scrape by. This dichotomy is at the heart of China’s annual Party Plenum taking place this week.
Guests:
Russell Flannery, China bureau chief, Forbes magazine
Minxin Pei, senior associate and co-director of the China Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Doug Guthrie, author of “Dragon in a Three-Piece Suit: The Emergence of Capitalism in China,” and associate professor of Sociology, New York University