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China is very much still on a rocky road, but not in the way that western media would have you think. Chinese by nature are a flexible bunch, they most certainly can adapt and absorb any downwind, then somehow find a zillion ways to better themselves.
I was in China and visited Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzou and Suzhou last August. Everything was normal, no more masks. Shanghai shopping malls area was pack with like millions of people. But it's winter now, the people prefer to stay at home, l think.
As a Chinese, I think shopping malls in large cities in China have gradually turned into a kind of life service complex. I go to shopping malls, but I hardly shop anymore. I go there to eat, watch movies, see exhibitions, go to spas, take my kids to Taekwondo, etc. There is a medium-sized shopping mall near my apartment. Now half of it is filled with restaurants and cafes, and less than 1/5 of the shopping mall is occupied by shopstores.
Well it's because of e-commerce. Can't really think of another reason that the supermarkets aren't working. If there was no Meituan or Jingdong Daojia people would've still go to the supermarket
Excellent. Between the crazy pro-China and negative-China, the facts are somewhere in the middle. You two are what we exactly need not just about China, but about anything. Super thanks!
Thanks that means a lot to hear. I try not to be too pro or negative China. I think China should be viewed like any other nation, it has good and bad. It is normal.
One thing to look at is the online traffic. During COVID, most Chinese used 'delivery services' to buy things, especially food. I think there is some carry over where people got used to using delivery service purchases. One needs to look at the online economy to get a better feel whether the economy is slowing.
Yes, this was just to compare that time with what it is like now. Not really a deep dive into the numbers. I do a lot more shopping online now vs before.
Online shopping was hot way before the covid, but people now not only buying things from TB, JD & PDD, but also buying grocery online, it is truly a winter time for shops.
@jordie4423 Wrong assumptions. 90% of Chinese own a home and 80% of those homeowners are mortgage free. For those who buy a home with a loan, down payment is 50 to 60% down. Way different than the US when it was no down, interest only payments and the mortgages were collateralized into stocks that were leveraged. BTW, Chinese mortgages last only about 10 years, not 30 years like the US. Further, if you actually looked at China's real estate problem, it is dominated by the fact that developers tried to spread their activities beyond real estate and got caught in a cash flow problem so couldn't pay their offshore interest payments on foreign bonds. US investors, including US banks, got hit the worse with bonds becoming worthless and payments in arear. Regarding shrinking workforce. Three things are at play. First an aging workforce, second a decline in exports because of a worldwide recession, and a shifting of gears by China from a labor intensive market to a technology driven market. China's GDP forecast for 2024 is 5%, but banks like the IMF have raised their predictions to 5.4%. That doesn't seem like China is crashing, mainly because China is focused on markets where it can get more value added than just cheap labor. China is trying to get more domestic consumption and offshore work in infrastructure in Africa, the Middle East, and South East Asia. And, to top it off, their inflation rate is zero.
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China is going through a transition right now. It's going to take a little while before it gets better. China let the real estate to fail on purpose. If they came to the rescue, later down the road they would be really screwed. China is now focusing a lot of their attention on technology, by heavily investing in that sector. Within 10 years, China will be the worlds leading tech countries on the planet. They will sell cheaper tech to other countries
That's the right thing to do. Real Estate is supposed for shelter needs, and speculation will lead to greed and unaffordable, Look at Vancouver Canada, San Francisco in US, or New York...it's a disaster.
Exactly, they did what Singapore did in the late 80s/early90s. Singapore cause the property (including commercial buildings) collapse. But in the 2010 onwards till date SG property has become too bubbly and is too dangerous to burst. Sigh..
The real estate market collapse in China has rocked the nation. China's economy is in free fall right now, huge banks have shut down, life savings of tens of millions of Chinese is gone. Just because a couple of white people walk around telling everyone how wonderful things are in China does NOT show what actually happening in the rest of China where most people live.
Malls in China are more alive than malls in the US. In my area our mall is pretty dead, only things they have left are restaurants, a Planet Fitness, and a GameStop.
The malls a still popular here, but they have been slowing down a little according to the data. But because they offer a lot and because the population is dense in bigger cities, the malls can still be busy at times.
Any country that should worry about its economy and future should be the Disunited States owing a debt of $34 trillion. It will crush the country and the citizens when the creditors call in the debt.😂😂😂
@@TripBittenthe negative aspects of the North American region is reflected in the numerous RU-vid Financial reporting we are seeing posted daily reflecting the negative market indicators projecting imminent depression decline. I observe there is little doubt that we who live in the West are in for very difficult times of economic adjustment.
@mulanfa1292 You often comment and seem bitter for some reason. I have lived here for over 13 years, I could make more money working in the US (especially if I had built my career there).... Not sure why you would attack/belittle one of the few content creators that are trying to show a normal life in China and present China in a normal way.
I think Canada is going into a recession, I asked around my colleagues, everyone said they did a lot less shopping this past Christmas and holiday season and didn’t do abroad travel, getting too expensive. And we’re accountants, considered middle class 😓
👍👍❤ Great to see both of you back in China and enjoying yourselves. Thank you for your updates about China, for sharing your joy, thoughts, and sights in China. ❤ 愿2024 年比2023年更好!祝大家:🎉 身心健康!❤ 幸福快乐!❤ 心想事成!❤
In Shenzhen, you definitely can see things improving within the last six months or so. Businesses are popping up all over the place and it is hard to imagine that the property developers have problems. Construction of flats, offices and metro lines is all over the place. Things are not as good as pre-COVID but are getting better.
China economy is not collapsing, but going through a transition period where China changes its GDP-oriented policy to high quality growth, like high tech, and more focus on social fairness in wealth distribution. Actually it is the government who intentionally popped up the real estate bubble, and discipline the big capitals like evergreen and Alibaba, China doesn't want to follow American's suit to let big corporations kidnap country economy. Any soical changing and correcting all have to pay prices, I think it is wise to pay sooner than later.
As you can see from the video the economy is indeed recovering. Many shops in that shopping mall are under renovation and are expected to reopen around the Chinese New Year. This shows that people's confidence is being restored and they are starting to invest.
With 1.4 billion people and a government that actually works to build the economy to benefit the country. I don't doubt China will overcome any economic problems. Focusing on the home market and building trade with the global majority states would serve China better in the future. Concentrating trade with Western anti-Chinese countries is never a good idea. Any short term benefit from that is more than canceled out by the dangers of being depend on enemies.
My impression in China a few months ago was that many off-brand retail shops didn't have customers but the brand shops were quite busy. It's like people go to luxury places for conspicuous consumption, but for everything else, they simply order via app. I wonder how many off-brand shops are able to maintain their storefront, especially in high traffic areas. I'm guessing those stores are able to stay due to large concessions by the property-holders so that their large complexes do not appear partially vacant.
living next door to usa, i am more concerned about the health of usa economy. recently, ex bank of canada boss david dodge said usa's 34T debt put americans up against the wall. when usa coughs, canada catches a terrible cold, so i am really concerned about my investment. love from canada.
I understand that feeling.... Watching the US add more debt scares me, because at some point they will have to deal with it, but there doesn't seem to be a solution. Ever empire has fallen and most have fallen because of economic collapse by taking on too much debt. I feel the US empire will fail in the next 20-50 years if nothing is done to change the economy. Fractional reserve banking basically means your economy is run on debt and I don't see how the US can change the final outcome, which is almost always an economic and currency collapse.
In my opinion Chinese are saver not spender. So if people are spending less than the economy is slowing down. Also it’s close to lunar new year so people are preparing to travel to see their family.
We were in GZ/SZ/Nanning back in May 2023, things were very slow. Spoke with taxi drivers and they all confirmed that business was slower during the locked down. Due to geopolitics and China is in transition her economic model, it will be slow for few more years. The West media is so exaggerating about China economic situation. Afterall, her overall GDP for 2023 was about 5.2%.
I was about to comment how quiet the street is even in January, upon closer look it is clear that you are shooting early morning with the long shadow. Who comes out this early on a Sunday morning. So, yes, China is back.
i lived in Shanghai for 5 years pre covid. It is notably empty at all locations shown in comparison. Not correct to compare during covid and now and thinking all is good. Without foot traffic and jobs, the newer store will not be there much longer. Chinese stores are great at shutting down and becoming empty overnight. Chinese tasted what prosperity is like- going back to stronger Mao/communist tendencies will move them in the opposite direction.
So I know for a fact that there are excellent hair salons in Beijing. Is there something preventing you from visiting them? Please show French or Dutch pastry shops…for benefit of deprived westerners . They should see what cakes look like even if they can not get to eat them. I will not hold it against you if you show metro and Silk market.
most of the chinese are staying home playing video games thats why china tryed to fix it and get people out spending and the gameing industry lost 80 billion over night
What's meant by "recovering"? Major international businesses taking profits out of China, moving manufacturing out of China, people leaving China out of fear of the impact of near rabid nationalism, interest rates climbing...in what way could China be recovering? Is mall traffic much of a measure of a "recovery". Comparing some mall traffic to when there was no mall traffic seems a poor measure.
Interest rates climbing, are your sure? Interest rates have been falling in China for the last two years and are now just over 2%, compared to over 5% in the US.
If you go to Harbin,you’ll find it super crowded and people from all different parts of China are traveling in Dongbei province now😂 it’s funny to see people are so “worried”about China’s economy
Ah... Harbin. That funny city where the airport terminal for international flights looks like a run down shack compared to the terminal for domestic flights.
@@TripBitten I think that's because this year it's much bigger event and with ethnic performances by different ethnic minorities there like the Koreans, Ewenki , Daur, Mongols, etc
As a tourist, if i were to go to China, this amount of crowd is just nice! Too crowded is good may be good for the vendors, but not good for a sightseeing or shopping experience. I guarantee you come Chinese New Year all the famous tourist sites will be teeming with domestic tourists you wish you had chosen a "quieter" season!
The 2-3 weekends before CNY, shopping retail delivery & food sectors will be very busy as the Chinese will be ushering in the Year of the Dragon 2024, the most auspicious of the 12 zodiacs, the dragon signify nobleness, success, luck, opportunities... And the annual CNY great migration will also happen so be patient with your travel during this period...
Tks for your video. Like some people said, many Chinese shop online. I, for one, only do online shopping 'cause it's more convenient and less time-consuming. As for facial masks, I'm one of those who still wear a mask whenever and wherever possible because we know that many western and southeast Asian countries are being hit hard by the new variant of JN.1 and sooner or later it will arrive in China. BTW, CV-19 is still evolving.
I live in Nanning and it's about the same , things are picking up and have been for a few months . I see it as positive but slow going. China will recover , more stores will open and the people and country will thrive. I'm still in for the long hall ( ;
Hey there . For coffee test i like luckin coffee more than starbucks . Really better test . Try latte coffee in lucking coffee 😊 . For business 2023 was better than 2022 . We hope 2024 more better .
The Coming Collapse of China is a book by Gordon G. Chang, published in 2001, some 20 odd years ago, but China still achieved over 5% growth last year. Not great, but still an enviable figure not achievable by any of the G7 countries. The Chinese is a resilient bunch, if they could survive the Cultural Revolution lasting over 10 years, the current problems are nothing in comparison. China will be ok, her economy will bounce back.
It looks like "not yet pre-pandemic", but I guess that will change soon to above pre-pandemic level. Thank you for this "China Streetview" accompanied with "China-Mallview" :D!
@1:17, I’m informed that the Chinese New Year is around the corner, and thus, many workers have traveled back home to celebrate the big holiday with family. Perhaps, that is the reason you see moderate pedestrian traffic.
That claim is pretty much a joke depends on how you explain that report, which shows in 2023, the unemployment rate of youth in Mainland China between the age of 16 to 23 was 20.8%, while this data included youth still in all kinds of schools studying, there were 96 millions of youth in that range, about 33 millions of them were not in schools and looking for jobs, about 27 millions of those got employed in May, not to mention there were lots of them were working individually as internet influencers, which mostly would not be registered, so the correct rate should be less than 8% in mid 2023. But on the other hand, China "produced" 11 millions college graduates in 2023, lots of them want decent looking jobs in offices, government, while those factories, farms were desperate to hire people. China's economy was fine, but the youth were not, getting too spoiled.
Yes, I didn't look into the numbers on the youth unemployment because it seemed like something the Western media was getting too excited about, so figured it must not be correct or correctly reported. Just remember that being a headline and people saying "China was collapsing again"