Columbia International Affairs Online: Working Papers

CIAO DATE: 11/2014

China's Debt Dilemma: Deleveraging While Generating Growth

Yukon Huang, Canyon Bosler

September 2014

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Abstract

Much of the media coverage of China’s economy suggests that the country is headed for a financial crisis. China’s mountain of debt is decried, local government finances are labeled menacing, and a property bubble is called disastrous. But this picture is misleading. While China has serious debt problems, with prudent macroeconomic policies and productivity-enhancing structural reforms, the challenges should be manageable if underlying fiscal issues and growth-related reforms are addressed.