Janet Yellen’s Beijing trip and the Chinese overcapacity threat

Janet Yellen lent official voice to resurgent global worries about the threat of Chinese overcapacity when she pointedly criticised Beijing’s overinvestment and underpowered consumption during her trip there earlier this month. 

 

But are the US Treasury Secretary’s criticisms justified? Will China’s leaders push through the necessary reforms to bring down the savings rate? And how will western governments respond if they don’t? 

 

In the latest episode of The Weekly Briefing from Capital Economics, Group Chief Economist Neil Shearing talks to Mark Williams, our Chief Asia Economist, all about the politics and economics around the perception that China’s factories are once again flooding global goods markets.