China playing this crisis awfully well on the economic front

MONEY: "China buys less U.S. debt as reserve growth slows: Foreign firms, natural resources also sought," by David J. Lynch, USA Today, 16 April 2009.

Think about it: raising the long-term issue of the dollar as global reserve currency (the fanciful proposal of SDRs as replacement), the bottom-feeding on natural resources and foreign firms (get' em while they're half priced), the announced moves on healthcare (a clinic for every village) and human rights (decidedly economic in their focus), the stimulus package (with its ancillary bold plan to dominate the future electric car industry), and the intended consequence of buying less U.S. debt (as a subtle prod to the U.S. on policy).

All of this is fairly sensible, calculating, and clever. It speaks to a long-term horizon.

All in all, other than the continued naval shenanigans, I would say that China has played this global financial crisis with real grace.

Comments

[Louis Heberlein]

No doubt China's leaders are clever, but they may also be wise. They quietly cooperated with Bush administration to field test energy generation and transmission technologies that are now being promoted by Obama and some European leaders. It would be interesting to hear what they would say should be initiatives would have mutual benefits, and what roles would be most appropriate for different players.