Relaxation hukou needed to boost economy - Heleen Mees

Heleen Mees

China's domestic visa system, the Hukou, is a drain on its economy and makes if very hard for the industry to switch from export and investment driven to a consumption economy, says economist Heleen Mees in the Globe&Mail.

The Globe&Mail:

“I think the relaxation of the hukou system around China is very important, and it’s very easy for China. It has a lot of benefits,” said Heleen Mees, a Dutch economist teaching at New York University who has studied the role of the high savings rate in China in the 2008 financial crisis. 

Along with fuelling consumption, she said, such a move could strengthen China’s service economy, moving the focus away from low-end, heavily polluting manufacturing for export. 

“The collapse of exports only reinforces the point that China will have to find its internal growth engine because they can’t rely on the U.S., they can’t rely on Europe,” she said.

More in the Global&Mail.

Heleen Mees is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' request form.

More on the political changes needed in China in the upcoming ten years in the China Weekly Hangout of November 1.

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