From today's Economist:
[China] is a statistical haze, but the trade figures for last month—with exports 2% lower than in November 2007 and imports 18% down—were shocking. Power generation, generally a reliable number, fell by 7%. Even though the World Bank and other forecasters still expect China’s GDP to grow by 7.5% in 2009, that is below the 8% level regarded, almost superstitiously, as essential if huge social dislocation is to be avoided. Just this month a senior party researcher gave warning of what he called, in party-speak, “a reactive situation of mass-scale social turmoil”. Indeed, demonstrations and protests, always common in China, are proliferating, as laid-off factory-workers join dispossessed farmers, environmental campaigners and victims of police harassment in taking to the streets.Indeed, an increasing number of Chinese citizens appear to be taking to the streets, as businesses and factories continue to shut down. It will be curious to discover how Chinese officials will continue to deal with the downturn. Perhaps even more curious to see if China's economic woes will translate to increased migration to African states - attractive markets for many unable to secure livelihoods in the Motherland.