The Real Cost of High Growth
In recent decades,
development has
been prioritized
over the
environment,
meaning that
China now has
some of the most
polluted skies
and waterways
in the world. It is
a situation that
will take decades
of extensive work
to rectify.
by Dan Watson
China Correspondent
watsoncw@rodpub.com
It goes without saying that China has proven it is a true heavyweight global contender. The herculean growth achieved by China
over the past two decades is unprecedented in
the annals of human history. China has over-taken Japan to become the world’s second
largest economy. This is a landmark achievement in itself but it is certainly not the last.
Clearly, China is poised to become number one
and overtake the U.S. economy sometime within
this decade.
In what appears to be a prelude to such a
happening, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) took the
first bold action against the U.S.’s credit rating
after many warnings from numerous circles
about its out-of-control deficit and debt situa-
tion. Although the U.S.’s credit rating was not
actually changed S&P did downgrade the U.S.
economic outlook from “stable” to “negative.”
Translating this financial jargon means that
there is a 33 percent chance that the U.S.’s top-
tier credit rating will be lowered within the next
two years. This would have a long lasting ad-
verse impact on the vast majority of U.S. citizens
in some fashion.
26 | Coatings World
www.coatingsworld.com
May 2011
