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China's Economic Miracle of the 2000s
Outline
Abstract

Life Expectancy

Adult Literacy

Gender Equality

Average Salary

Beer Consumption Rate

Mobile Internet & Internet Coverage

Unemployment Rate

Investor Activity

Consumer Activity

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GDP per Capita Growth

Conclusion
Abstract
China demonstrated tremendous economics growth that in turn improved a set of

parameters such as life expectancy, adult literacy, gender equality, average salary, beer
consumption rate, mobile Internet usage, etc. The aforementioned parameters influence the
economy differently. For example, beer consumption growth does not always indicate the
economic growth trend. In comparison with other giants states such as India, China demonstrates
better economic performance and improvement of various socioeconomic parameters. While
comparing two giant economies such as China and India in terms of several socioeconomic
parameters, China performs better despite one-party political system. Democratic India
demonstrates lower economic growth rate and worse gender equality situation, etc. Key
macroeconomic indicators are employment rate, inflation rate, consumer activity, investor
activity, GDP per capita.
GDP per capita in China is almost fourfold larger than in case of India, though the
population size of China and India are almost the same, 1.38 billion and 1.32 billion, respectively
(2014). China's GDP per capita grows faster than India's one, as for 2011-2014 time period,
China's GDP per capita grew 36 percent, while India's GDP per capita grew only 11 percent.
India falls behind China in terms of most socioeconomic parameters, and only beer consumption
rate in India exceeds Chinese one, but beer market size does not correspond to the economic
growth trend. In 2012, for example, India's GDP shrank 1 percent, while beer market size grew 4

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percent. Hence, beer consumption rate is rather relative parameter that cannot be interpreted as a
direct measurement of the national well-being level.
Life Expectancy
As for the life expectancy growth, China demonstrated the most tremendous fifty-percent
life expectancy growth in 1965-1975, growing from 44 years in 1965 up to 65 years in 1975,
while other large counties such as the U.S. experienced stable two-percent growth in 1965-1975
(Fig. 1). India experienced stable life expectancy throughout the twentieth century, unlike China,
which experienced tremendous population losses during the Chinese revolution of 1949. The
population of European countries experienced the life expectancy growth rate, quite similar to
the U.S. growth rate. Tremendous economic transformation called Great Leap Forward caused
giant changes from the social and economic perspectives in China, led by Mao Zedong in the
1960s. Indian life expectancy is still 8 years lower than in case of China and 14 years lower than
in case of the U.S. (Life Expectancy in China, Europe, USA and India).
Adult Literacy
Adult literacy in China has always been higher than in India, 90% share and 55% share,
respectively, as for 2000 (Fig. 2). The point is that Communist Party of China declared
Communist-style equality of all citizens, unlike democratic India, which advocated liberal proWestern values in terms of deregulation and free market economy. In other words, India let the
rich get richer and the poor stay poor (James). Harsh social discipline and lack of political
competition within Communist Party of China let the People's Republic of China (PRC) to
demonstrate tremendous economic growth in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.
In 2010, adult literacy in India reached 70-percent share, but Chinese rate of adult literacy

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reached 95 percent, according to World Bank statistics. As for the unequal distribution of literacy
rate within China, almost 40 percent of the Tibetan Chinese are illiterate (Truss). Remote
continental regions of Qinghai and Guizhou have more than 10 percent of the illiterate adult
population. The lowest illiteracy rate is 1.48% in case of the Beijing population.
Gender Equality
The lowest rate of the female labor participation refers to middle-income jobs, while high
income jobs are more widespread among female employees, 63 percent and 76 percent,
respectively (Gender Data Portal). Chinese female labor is less exposed to the unemployment
issues because the male labor unemployment rate is higher than the female one, 5.4 percent and
3.9 percent, respectively. India's gender equality parameters are quite similar to Chinese ones.
Female labor enjoys better employment rate in terms of high-income jobs in comparison with
middle-income jobs, 76 percent and 63 percent, respectively. In 2000, male workers earned two
times more than female workers. However, in 2000-2014, the average salary of the female
workers grew significantly, while male workers' salary grew a little. The female labor
unemployment rate exceeds 0.5 percent in comparison with the male labor unemployment rate, 4
percent and 3.5 percent, respectively. China experiences better gender equality parameters such
as wealth distribution among labor as well as unemployment rate in regard to sex.
Average Salary
China's average salary per person grew threefold in 2004-2014, from almost 1,300 RMB
(~$190 per month) in 2004 up to 4,700 RMB (~$670 per month) in 2014 (Mei-Pochtler).
Average monthly pay in India in 2014 comprised about $80 (Fig. 3, India Average Daily Wage
Rate). Unlike India, China made a tremendous leap forward in terms of the average salary per

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workers in the 2000s and the 2010s. In 2004, Chinese monthly pay was more than two times
larger than the Indian one, while the 2014 Chinese pay exceeds the Indian one 8 times, or 800%.
Beer Consumption Rate
In 1991-2014 (Fig. 4), beer consumption rate in China tripled, from 80 million hectolitres
(hl) in 1991 up to 266 million hectolitres in 2004. Beer consumption rate increase obviously
indicates the increase of well-being to some certain extent. As for India, beer consumption rate
grew almost fivefold in 2001-2015, from 468 million liters up to 2,366 million liters in 2015
(Fig. 5). However, correlation between beer consumption and GDP growth reveals discrepancy
between two parameters. That is to say, increase of beer consumption does not mean GDP
growth and thus increase of standards of living. India's GDP shrank 1 percent in 2012, while beer
consumption in 2012 nearly doubled, from 7-percent beer market growth in the early 2012 and
12-percent beer market growth in the late 2012 (Analysis of Beer Market in India).
Mobile Internet & Internet Usage Rate
Mobile Internet usage and Internet usage are interconnected in most countries, but an
upward trend of mobile Internet usage usually corresponds to the Internet usage trend. Mobile
Internet usage grew tenfold in seven years, 2007-2014. Nowadays, up to 500 million Chinese
people in 2014 use mobile Internet apps via their smartphones. In 2007, the percentage of people
with access to Internet increased threefold in 2007-2014, from 25 percent to 85 percent
(Statistical Report on Internet Development in China).
Just in two years, 2012-2014, the number of mobile Internet users in India increased from
48 million people (3.8% of the overall population of India) in 2012 up to 185 million people
(14.29% of the overall population). Thus, the number of the mobile Internet users in India grew

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nearly fourfold, from about 4 percent in 2012 up to 15 percent in 2014 (Fig. 7). Population of
India grew slightly in 2012-2014, from 1.26 billion people in 2012 up to 1.29 billion people in
2014. Population grew 2.5 percent in 2012-2014, and mobile Internet usage grew 273 percent,
nearly threefold.
Unemployment Rate
China enjoys stable four-percent unemployment rate throughout the 2010s, while India
managed to decrease the unemployment rate from 10 percent in 2010 down to 7.3 percent in
2014, according to CIA World Fact Book (Fig. 8). High employment rate automatically means
better purchasing power of population because employed adults can spend more money than
unemployment adults.
Consumer Activity
Despite one-party political system, Communist China outran democratic India thanks to
harsh social discipline and official intention of the Chinese government to create vast Chinese
middle class until 2050. Nowadays, Chinese middle class comprises about one-fifth of the
population, or about 300 million people. By 2022, 75 percent of Chinese urban population will
enjoy the scale of the household disposable income, similar to income in Italy or Brazil,
(~$9,000-$36,000) (Barton, Chen & Jin). Nowadays, Chinese economy heads for the
establishment of profound middle class within the framework of the Communist Party agenda.
Investor Activity
Chinese businesses actively invest in the foreign economies worldwide, outrunning the
investor activity of India. China accumulated the U.S. Treasury bonds, worth more than $1

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trillion (2014). India buys far fewer US government bonds, worth $117 billion (Nayak). China
accumulated roughly tenfold more US government bonds than India, while population of China
and India are relatively similar, 1.38 billion and 1.32 billion, respectively.
GDP Per Capita Growth
GDP per capita growth reflects a proportion of the economic output per person. China
enjoys steady growth of GDP per capita in 2011-2014, according to World Bank data. For
example, China's GDP per capita grew almost 40% just in four years, 2011-2014, from $5,574 in
2011 up to $7,590 in 2014, actual growth of GDP per capita in China equaled approximately 36
percent, or nine-percent growth per year. India's GDP per capita was more than threefold lower
than the China's one in 2011, $1,471 versus $5,574. India's GDP per capita grew only 11 percent
in 2011-2014.
Conclusion
China was exposed to tremendous socioeconomic changes throughout twentieth and
twenty-first centuries. Chinese macroeconomic factors grew faster than the Indian ones, while
taking into account GDP per capita growth, average salary growth, gender equality, life
expectancy, mobile Internet usage, etc. The key socioeconomic parameter is GDP per capita that
means an embodiment of the economic output per person. Beer consumption rate proved to be
low-effective socioeconomic measurement of well-being because beer consumption growth
could correspond to the fall of nominal GDP. India's beer consumption rate is the only
socioeconomic parameter, higher than in case of China. Chinese economy enjoys stable low
unemployment rate of slightly more than 4 percent, while India experienced a 10-percent
unemployment rate in 2010, according to the CIA World Fact Book. In 2004-2014, China

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managed to provide about 85 percent of entire population with the Internet access, unlike India,
which enjoys only 15-percent mobile Internet coverage (2014). Chinese women enjoy higher
income and better female-to-male labor ratio concerning well-paid jobs in the market. Chinese
women enjoy lower unemployment rate in comparison with Indian women who in turn are
exposed to higher household expenditures and other labor liabilities.

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Works Cited
Barton, Dominic, Yougang Chen, and Amy Jin. "Mapping China's Middle Class". McKinsey &
Company. N.p., 2013. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
James, Sebastian. "Why Is China Ahead Of India? A Fascinating Analysis By Amartya
Sen". World Bank. N.p., 2013. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
Mei-Pochtler, Antonella. "China: Average Annual Salary Of An Employee 2014 |
Statistic".Statista. N.p., 2016. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
Nayak, Gayatri. "RBI's Ownership Of US Treasury Bonds And Bills Rise 40% To $117 Billion
At December End - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. N.p., 2016. Web. 24
Apr. 2016.
Truss, Mark. "China: Illiteracy Rate By Region 2014 | Statistic". Statista. N.p., 2016. Web. 24
Apr. 2016.
"Analysis Of Beer Market In India. Journal.Beer 3-2015 | Journal.Beer Daily News &
Analysis". Journal.beer. N.p., 2016. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
"Gender Data Portal | China. Datatopics.worldbank.org. N.p., 2016. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
"Life Expectancy In China, Europe, USA And India, 1950 - 2050". China-profile.com. N.p.,
2016. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
"India Average Daily Wage Rate | 1965-2016 | Data | Chart | Calendar".Tradingeconomics.com.
N.p., 2016. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.

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Appendix

Fig. 1. Life Expectancy Growth in 1950-2100

Fig. 2. Adult Literacy India vs. China

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Fig. 3. Daily wage in India, Indian National Currency

Fig. 4. China beer consumption, in million hectolitres (hl), 1991-2004

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Fig. 5. India beer market volume, mln liters | Correlation between Indian beer market and
real GDP growth, %
Fig. 6. Size of mobile Internet users in China and its Proportion in Internet Users

Fig. 7. Mobile Internet Users in India, in millions of people, 2012-2014

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Fig. 8. India: Unemployment rate from 2010 to 2014