China is now mostly urban vs rural so it’s many vs few of middle class urban in special economic zones vs the fewer renaming peasants.
China’s population is predominantly urban, with around 67% living in urban areas and 33% in rural areas as of 2024
Key Figures (circa 2024):
Total Population: ~1.41 billion
Urban Population: ~943.5 million (approx. 67%)
Rural Population: ~464.8 million (approx. 33%)
Of those urban population 600+ million have PPP that’s parallel purchasing power of the average European.
Cars , condos or apartments, tech toys like smart phones and 65” LED tv’s the young of China party and they are all forward looking they see the 21st century as their’s they simply don’t care if it’s one party or not as long as they get to take part in it.
Shanghai is by far the most modern city I have been in it blows any European city away and makes NYC which was home and I dearly love look like a early 20th century relic. High speed rail everywhere, clean fast efficient metros and busses plus AI robotaxis means it’s super easy to get around. Take a trip when you get out of the airport especially at night it’s like stepping into Tokyo but on a scale that dwarfs Tokyo CBD district.
Simple.fact is America better get past partisan politics and start competing with the industrial, tech and infrastructure.giant or we will be left behind it is that simple.
Interesting how many dispute the population of China, some say around 600 million.
Agree we need to get our act together, but I have my suspicions that China is not all that you crack it up to be.
As I said, and I realize it is not the best comparison, but will say it anyways
Russia has made St. Petersburg and Moscow their jewels by spending on it while much of the rest of Russia not so much