around the world and keeping the internet free and fair. the big boss of web browser, firefox, tells me how herfoundation is trying to compete with the deep pocketed rivals like google and apple and still have an influence. wherever you rejoining me from around the world. once again, a big hello and a warm welcome to the show. china it s the world s second biggest economy. it trails only the united states and is more than four times the size of the next on the list, japan. so what happens there certainly matters. but a year since the government abandoned coronavirus lockdowns, it s an economy that s still struggling. the challenges for president xi jinping s government include vast debts in the property market and local government, soaring youth unemployment, an ageing workforce and ongoing trade tensions with the united states. his government set a target of around 5% for economic growth this year. it was the lowest in decades, and some say that was deliberate, but it will
a real pleasure having you on the show. and let me start with this, because the challenges for president xijinping when it comes to china s economy are a vast and varied. i m just wondering why we ve got you. why we ve got you, what s the most pressing point, do you think, in your consideration? the chinese economy is undergoing a serious challenge. the lowest growth for the last a0 years, high youth unemployment, mountainous debt and the debt overhang and very little income growth so that people are saving 50%. household savings rate has really peaked. now, these are serious challenges, but i want to ask a question. you know, is this really cyclical or structural? is it a permanent decline like the west has already depicted demographics and ageing and more state control, meaning a doom loop? i don t think it s the latter. the very fact is that the chinese economy did not see this kind of huge stimulus package that europe and the us had during the pandemic. so there s a lack of confide
While pandemic-era stimulus checks provided an opportunity for many people to save money, savings rates have been on a downward trend recently. From 2020-2021, household savings as a percentage of.