The good news for China

Posted By Elizabeth Dickinson Wednesday, March 18, 2009 - 8:03 AM Share

The World Bank published its quarterly update on China today, and the news is mixed -- but much better than what most countries are hearing. In summary:

While China's real economy has been hit hard by the global crisis, it is still holding up."

The bank predicts a growth rate of 6.5 percent -- lower than the "magic" 8 percent that mythically promises to prevent social uproar.

But while the news is not all good, why is no one noticing that the silver lining is, well, gold? China's banks are "largely unscathed," the report finds. Says the World Bank country director for China, David Dollar:

China is a relative bright spot in an otherwise gloomy global economy...Shifting China's output from exports to domestic needs helps to provide immediate stimulus while laying the foundation for more sustainable growth in the future.”

Given the brutal global context, sounds like victory for China to me.

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