Who’s Afraid of Chinese Surpluses?
China recorded the largest trade surplus in history last year, and its exports continue to grow. But the scale of the threat to the global economy, and the appropriate response, remains subject to considerable disagreement. Some economists advocate protectionist measures, if only to pressure China to commit to economic rebalancing, others argue that tariffs won’t help, and still others think the specter of another “China shock” is a bogeyman, because China’s surpluses do more good than harm.
