China Case Study - Globalisation - Geography GCSE

In 30 years, China has transformed from being a mainly agricultural economy to being a strong manufacturing economy

• Now, it has the third largest economy in the world (after the USA and Japan)
• In 1978, 30% of China's GDP came from agriculture, however by 2004, agriculture only accounted for less than 15%
• The number of products manufactured in China has rapidly increased
  -4000 colour TVs were manufactured in China in 1978
  -75 million were produced in 2004 
• China produces 60% of the world's bicycles and 50% of the world's shoes

Government Legislation:

• Foreign investment was encouraged, while the government kept control of the economy, meaning China would gain maximum profit
• China set up many Special Economic Zones to encourage for foreign investment
  -These offered tax incentives to foreign businesses
• Open cities were established (e.g. Shanghai) - encouraging further foreign investment

The One Child Policy/The Home Market

• The One Child Policy which was introduced in 1979 means that the population is much lower than it would have been (400million less) 
• The policy also meant that people's desires changed 
  -there was an increased demand for electrical equipment and other goods 
• As the population is becoming increasing wealthy it means that the home market is increasing

The Olympics factor:

• The 2008 Olympic Games were held in China 
  -this gave the country a chance to showcase itself to the rest of the world 
• It portrayed China as being an open, friendly country
• This was important in stimulating more foreign investment

The Three Gorges Dam:

• Industry requires large resources of energy
• Two-thirds of the electricity is formed at coal power stations
• The Three Gorges Dam is the largest in the world - generating 22,500mW
  -This accounts for 7% of China's electricity
• The Dam has led to a lot of development 

Cheap Labour:

• There's no overall minimum wage - it varies in different places
• In Beijing the minimum wage is £70 a month - which is very cheap
  -in the UK, the minimum wage is £990 a month
• The wages are around 95% lower than in the USA

Long Working hours:

• Chinese law state that people can only work 40 hours per week with a maximum of 36 hours of overtime per month
  - these laws are often not enforced

Lax Health and Safety Regulations:

• Even the health and safety laws in China are similar to other countries, they are not heavily enforced

Prohibition of strikes - strikes are permitted however, the trade union should get people back to work as soon as possible