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Editor's Note

It’s been a stunning couple of months in the business world, with the US economy taking a nosedive and threatening to take the world economy down with it and with economic, governmental and business leaders worldwide taking steps, even drastic steps, to ensure that local populations do not suffer from what has been described as the worst global financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Now, with its 4 trillion yuan (about US$586 billion) economic stimulus package announced November 9, China is weighing in, putting its money where it will do the whole world and China the most good: into strengthening its domestic economy, perhaps the biggest economy in the world with good prospects for real growth in the shortest possible term.

This is clearly something Chinese Government leaders have been planning for some time: the New Socialist Countryside plan was implemented long ago and the Third Plenum of the 17th CPC Central Committee’s meeting to deepen and broaden its rural development policies was planned long before the wings were shorn from high-flying financiers in New York and London. So the Chinese Government’s action is timely in innumerable ways. When the world called, China had an answer.

In this issue of Business Beijing, we explore some of the issues that have emerged in this economic mess from various points of view, beginning on page 12. We also have quick takes on the key areas of concern in China’s stimulus package (page 7) and how the money involved will be spent.

Chinese leaders also hosted the Seventh Asia–Europe Meeting (page 28), which ended up focusing on world economic issues, during which China was called upon to take a leading role in refashioning the world economy at the G20 global economic summit scheduled for November 15 in Washington, DC.

In a time when even wire services and news Web sites can hardly keep up with breaking economic news events, we’ve done our best to bring some perspective to this important moment in our lives, including an introduction to some of the views about China reportedly held by US President-Elect Barack H. Obama (page 6).

Perhaps one thing we will remember after this moment fades from the memory is that no one panicked. The problem was recognized and the world came together to deal with it, with answers and solutions coming from and being welcomed from all quarters.

Perhaps the symbol for this time should be the phoenix. How many new opportunities, we wonder, lie before us?