One of the most widely-held misconceptions about China is that the economy contains an over-investment time-bomb, which will soon result in a sharp correction in both investment and GDP growth, resulting in rising non-performing loans (NPLs) and in deflation. The reasoning behind this theory is that fixed asset investment (FAI) is growing at above 20% year on year, while the investment-to-GDP ratio is already above 45% (higher than the levels reached by Asian economies before the 1997 crisis). Furthermore, this investment boom is financed by misallocated bank credits and generates few returns...

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