China Is Turning Into Its Own Worst Economic Enemy

John Authers wrote earlier this week about how China will help set the course of U.S. stocks for a while. The unfortunate catch is that China’s economy is clearly in trouble. Wall Street seems to hang much of that on President Donald Trump’s trade war, which certainly doesn’t help. But there are disturbing signs China’s problems have deep roots, Noah Smith writes. Ever since the financial crisis, he notes, China’s productivity has been weak:

This, along with flagging population growth, is a toxic economic combo. Meanwhile, the growing antagonism of China’s trading partners is closing off access to cutting-edge technology. Since the crisis, Beijing has deployed bursts of credit-based stimulus to keep the economy moving. But this might feed the longer-term problem, Noah suggests, by pumping capital into local governments and pricey building projects that don’t boost productivity. Far more than Trump, China may be stunting its own economic future. Read the whole thing.