A professor at one of China’s leading universities says that the country’s economy could achieve high income status by as early as the start of next decade.
Ding Zhijie (丁志杰), a professor at Beijing’s University of International Business and Economics, believes that there is a strong likelihood that China’s high-income phase could kick off in 2021, based on estimates of real per capita economic growth and appreciation of the renminbi.
Speaking at the 2017 China Listed Company Legal Risk Management Forum (中国上市公司法律风险管理高峰论坛), Ding pointed out that China’s per capita income was USD$8260 in 2016, putting it amongst the middle reaches of the World Bank’s ranking of 216 nations.
According to Ding China’s per capita income now stands at around 80% of the global average, as compared to to 8% in 1992, 20% in 2002 and 60% in 2012.
Ding notes that China’s economic growth began to really take off in 1994, enabling it to join the ranks of middle income nations by the turn of the current decade.
“From 1994 to 2015 China saw rapid annual economic growth. This was comprised of two parts – the first was real economic growth, and the second was exchange rate appreciation.”
Ding sees ongoing economic growth and exchange rate appreciation to continue to drive income gains, and push China into the ranks of high income nations by 2021.
