Saturday, November 20, 2010

Australia pwned



If you want to understand just how deluded Australia is strategically then take a look at the above extraordinary chart. Business Insider ran this under the heading "Why China interest rate tightening matters" (h/t The Lorax).

And sure, it does. But that's not what this blogger sees.

In 2004 our exports to the US were on a par with China. By 2008, China was at 3 x US. But since the GFC, with US demand in retrenchment and China stimulating their fixed investment boom, our Chinese export earnings are now 6 x US.

Has there ever been a more dramatic shift in the power relations of a single nation?

We may not yet know it yet, but China owns us: economically, politically, strategically...

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Living here in the West, you know this is true. This state would be comatose is not for China. And the rest of the country would be dead.

If China sneezes ....

Anonymous said...

damn..."if not for China".

Financial Follies said...

I was amazed by that Business Insider chart too.
Check out the recent RBA paper on Chinese commodities demand:
"China accounts for around two-thirds of world iron ore demand, around one-third of aluminium ore demand and more than 45per cent of global demand for coal."
This all being the only reason we "dodged" the GFC. Doesn't bode well for when China slows down...

Anonymous said...

Like so much else in the current Australian situation the "China Syndrome" is a house of cards.We will all suffer for this self serving stupidity.