Hu promised double GDP?

[chornedsnorkack]

Originally Posted by Celebriton

Really??? You must be joking! A factory workers and other workers earn USD 400 a month on average? A common thing on the street level? I still need confirmation from another members here.

If that true, it's a really good news. That explain, in the detailed report of China GDP growth, domestic consumption increase at double digit.

This is average. Not median.

On the other hand, this is average over all people - including not only factory workers but peasants.

[VECTROTALENZIS]

For Some Jobs, China Salaries Now On Par With U.S.

China incomes are on the rise, but the payscale at some professional jobs in China may surprise the average American. Based on 2011 salaries, some Chinese workers are earning as much as their American counterparts. As U.S. wages go down, China wages are going up.

Position Annual Salary (US$)

Engineering supervisor 25,000 – 42,000
General manager 130,000 – 330,000
R&D director 100,000 – 167,000
Procurement director 67,000 – 150,000
Quality director 67,000 – 150,000
Chief technology officer 167,000 – 330,000
Marketing director 100,000 – 130,000
PR/communications manager 34,000 – 67,000
Regional sales manager 67,000 – 100,000

Source: Hays 2012 Salary Guide – Asia

Of course, most Chinese do not have professional jobs, and minimum wage and social safety net comparisons to the U.S. are dismal. The federal minimum wage level in the U.S. is $7.25 per hour. A 40 hour work week means $290 a week gross for the lowest full-time workers in America. In Shenzhen and Shanghai, two of the highest earning cities in China, minimum wage is $238 and $230, respectively…per month.

Yet, minimum wage levels are also rising in China. At a minimum, low wage levels are up 18% in industrial cities like Guangzhou but they are up as much as 37% over the last two years in Nanjing.

City ............. 2010.............2011.............2012...................2012 vs. 2010 % Rise
Beijing ............. $152............$184 ............. $200 ............. 31%
Shanghai ............. $177 ............. $203 ............. $230 ............. 29
Shenzhen ............. $174 ............. $209 ............. $238 ............. 36
Wuhan ............. $142 ............. $174 ............. $174 ............. 22
Chengdu ............. $135 ............. $135 ............. $166 ............. 23
Guangzhou .............$174 ............. $206 ............. $206 ............. 18
Nanjing ............. $152 ............. $181 ............. $209 ............. 37
Chongqing ............. $108 ............. $138 ............. $138 ............. 27

Source: China Statistical Bureau

Blue collar wages in major cities are all on the rise. Salaries for skilled management positions are approaching or equal to that of developed country wages for similar positions. This will be exacerbated in the near term by the shrinking size of the working-age population. Population growth rates are expected to turn negative before the end of this decade.

Fears of slowing growth in China have dominated discussions among American business executives in recent months, but new investment from companies indicates a steady level of optimism about growth over the long term, said Julie Walton, director of the U.S. China Business Council in Shanghai. She noted that in April, Ford Motor Co (F) announced that it would invest $490 million in its passenger assembly vehicle plant in Chongqing. McDonald’s (MCD) announced that it was hiring a whopping 70,000 new employees to staff their 250 new restaurants it plans to open in 2012. And Samsung Electronics said it will invest $7 billion to build a semiconductor chip factory in Xi’an, Shaanxi.

[VECTROTALENZIS]

China's middle-class boom

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- As China's economy has exploded over the last 30 years, so too have the incomes and living standards of average Chinese people.
The average disposable income of urban Chinese households rose to around $3,000 per capita in 2010, according to an analysis of official government statistics by China Market Research Group. That means a typical family of three earns around $9,000 a year.

While that might not sound like a lot by U.S. standards, it's a boon for Chinese residents, who have seen their yearly earnings multiply tenfold since 1980.
Over the past 10 years alone, incomes have quadrupled. In 2000, the average income was just $760 per person.
Of course, incomes vary greatly from region to region, with most of the wealthier residents residing in the cities. In rural areas, the average disposable income drops to $1,000, but in China's largest cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen, it's around $12,000 a year, per person.
Meet China's 'middle class'
While there's no official "middle-class" in China, (Chinese people don't use the concept), a household considered to be middle-class in China would earn somewhere between $10,000 and $60,000 a year, according to Helen Wang, author of The Chinese Dream: The Rise of the World's Largest Middle Class and What It Means to You.
"A rule of thumb is a household with a third of its income for discretionary spending is considered middle class," Wang said.
Being middle-class in China often means earning at or below what's considered the poverty line in America. But considering the much lower cost of Chinese life, living standards there aren't bad at all.
The average city resident can afford to rent a 700-square-foot apartment, spend 35% of their income on food, and still put 20% aside in savings, as is customary in China, estimates James Roy, senior analyst at China Market Research.
Meanwhile, few use credit cards, and most are unlikely to own a car, opting for public transportation instead. The typical cell phone bill is around only $10 a month (or about $20 for an iPhone).

Eating out once or twice a week is not uncommon, sometimes including American fast food chains like KFC or Pizza Hut which have expanded aggressively in China. The average consumer can also afford to be brand-conscious on occasion.
"In most cases the wife, who typically has a full-time job, makes most household purchasing decisions and is willing to trade up to buy foreign brands from companies like Procter & Gamble and Unilever for products like shampoo," Roy said.

For above-average earners, luxury brands are also within reach. China has already overtaken Japan as the second largest luxury goods consumer after the United States, according to analysts at Bain & Company.
Chen Zhi-Heng earns about $36,000 a year working as a doctor in Changsha, a city in south-central China. Even though she earns far above average, she doesn't consider herself well-off enough to be middle class.
With roughly $800 free each month to spend on discretionary items, she owns a $4,700 Gucci watch, a $1,600 Burberry coat and a $320 Hermes silk scarf.
"Buying Louis Vuitton, Apple or other cool stuff is important for many Chinese, showing off that they're modern, sophisticated and have status," said Wang.

Plus, Wang points out that in reality, Chinese incomes are probably much higher than the government reports.
That's partly because households often underreport their income, fearing the government will pass on the information to tax collectors.
The official government figures also don't include rampant under-the-table payments, large cash gifts around Chinese New Year, bribes or land deals. Professor Wang Xiaolu of the China Reform Foundation, in a report for Credit Suisse, estimated in 2008 that the average income was actually 90% higher than the government reported.
"Somehow people always seem to have a lot of cash, even though official data shows income at about $3,000 per capita," said Wang. "There's a lot of grey income in China."

[VECTROTALENZIS]

The average disposable income of urban Chinese households rose to around $3,000 per capita in 2010, according to an analysis of official government statistics by China Market Research Group. That means a typical family of three earns around $9,000 a year.

Over the past 10 years alone, incomes have quadrupled. In 2000, the average income was just $760 per person.
Of course, incomes vary greatly from region to region, with most of the wealthier residents residing in the cities. In rural areas, the average disposable income drops to $1,000, but in China's largest cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen, it's around $12,000 a year, per person.

That's 1000 USD a month per person in the large cities on the east coast.

The average city resident can afford to rent a 700-square-foot apartment, spend 35% of their income on food, and still put 20% aside in savings, as is customary in China, estimates James Roy, senior analyst at China Market Research.

Plus, Wang points out that in reality, Chinese incomes are probably much higher than the government reports.
That's partly because households often underreport their income, fearing the government will pass on the information to tax collectors.
The official government figures also don't include rampant under-the-table payments, large cash gifts around Chinese New Year, bribes or land deals. Professor Wang Xiaolu of the China Reform Foundation, in a report for Credit Suisse, estimated in 2008 that the average income was actually 90% higher than the government reported.
"Somehow people always seem to have a lot of cash, even though official data shows income at about $3,000 per capita," said Wang. "There's a lot of grey income in China."

THIS IS THE REALITY. People are richer than their salary suggests, I am witnessing this in Shanghai right now. That was one of the first surprises I noticed when arriving in Shanghai, people HAVE money, more money than I thought

[teddybear]

^Thanks for posting! Those seems the reality. I believe the income is not really bad, or to the extreme like celebriton said. But I still do not understand the difference between median and average income? They suppose to be the same right?

[chornedsnorkack]

Originally Posted by teddybear

^Thanks for posting! Those seems the reality. I believe the income is not really bad, or to the extreme like celebriton said. But I still do not understand the difference between median and average income? They suppose to be the same right?

No, they are different.

Median is the level which 50 % are higher and 50 % are lower - irrespective of how much higher or lower.

Average is the level of total sum equally divided.

Say a neighbourhood has 100 people - 90 are working all at equal salary of $1000 per month. The other 10 are unemployed - income 0.

Median is $1000 per month - 50 are richer (50 of the workers), 50 poorer (40 of the workers and the 10 unemployed).

Average is $900 - 90x$1000 divided to 100.

Another factory has also 100 people - 90 ordinary workers again all at equal salary of $1000, and 10 managers and owners each at $5000

Median $1000 for the same reasons.

Average now $1400 - total is 90x1000+10x5000=90000+50000=140000.

[andyvia]

The average annual salary for urban people in non private companies is 42452 yuan or 567 us dollars per month. The non private companies here include public listed private companies and those private companies in the form of corporation limited. In other words, private companies here basically mean small companies.

[Scion]

http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2...llion-by-2020/

Report: China ‘Affluent’ Population to Hit 280 Million by 2020

As China looks to shift its export-dependent economy to a greater reliance on domestic consumption, one number is in its favor: 280 million.

That’s the total number of affluent consumers China is expected to have by 2020 – more than doubling the current total of 120 million — according to a new study by consultancy Boston Consulting Group.

BCG describes as affluent people with annual household disposable incomes of between $20,000 and $1 million. The upper affluent — those earning between $40,000 and $1 million per year — will account for 40% of the 280 million, the BCG study said. (BCG puts people whose families have disposal incomes over $1 million per year in a separate category, high net-worth individuals.)

China has been trying for years to get its people to spend more, in part to wean the world’s No. 2 economy off export-led growth at a time of falling consumption abroad. But regular Chinese workers, unsettled by the country’s meager health care and pension systems, remain reluctant to part with their money. That leaves the wealthy as the best hope for gains in domestic consumer spending in the short- and medium term.

The report, based on interviews with 3,000 affluent individuals, says most of China’s current affluent population are under 45 years old and arrived at their position after spending at least five years toiling away as members of the middle class. They have different spending habits than the middle class, putting more emphasis on “emotional satisfaction” and less on utility when deciding to make a purchase.

The affluent will propel 40% of China’s consumption growth and will comprise 35% of all consumer spending in 2020, up from 24% last year, according to BCG. Their spending will grow fivefold to $3.1 trillion in the next eight years.

Every business—from the usual luxury suspects down to the shampoo sellers and travel agents—will be looking to cash in. But it won’t be easy, the BCG study says, adding that wealth will be far more scattered around the country, with 75% of future affluent consumers coming from China’s smaller, lower-tier cities.

The country’s wealthy are also becoming more split, with the veterans no longer interested in flashy, logo-laden products and the newbies wanting all the glimmer, BCG says.

Further complicating the picture is the growth of a new generation who inherited their wealth, rather than accumulating it on their own. The silver spoon set will comprise 30% of the affluent in five years, up from its current 10%, the data said. These consumers are fickle, rejecting the products their parents use, wanting exclusive but unique products.

That leaves a major task-list for corporations. Businesses will need to rethink their strategy, outlining expansion, split marketing or product lines, an extreme understanding of the Web and social media and basically what it means to be hip in China, the BCG study said.

[Scion]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...002769066.html

Urban Wages in China Rise by Double Digits


By AARON BACK

BEIJING—Average wages for urban Chinese workers rose by double digits across various categories of employment last year, the National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday.

By giving workers more disposable income to spend, higher wages will aid China's goal of rebalancing toward domestic demand. At the same time, they will pose challenges by contributing to inflation and putting pressure on corporate profit margins.

Wages of urban workers at private enterprises rose 18.3% in 2011 to an average level of 24,556 yuan ($3,885) a year, the statistics bureau said. That amounts to a 12.3% rise after higher living expenses are taken into account, it added.

The 2011 rise exceeded that of the year before, when they were up 14.1% before accounting for living expenses.

In the nonprivate sector, average wages were up 14.3% in 2011 to 42,452 yuan, compared with a 13.5% rise in 2010.

Under the bureau's definition, private-sector companies include only small companies. Listed companies and foreign-invested companies, including those under private ownership, fall under the "nonprivate sector" heading, as do government agencies and state-owned enterprises.

[andyvia]

Thanks for posting the data,Scion. For others, please see my explanation for the definition of private companies for a better understanding.

[teddybear]

chornedsnorkack, thanks for explanation!

[Restless]

Originally Posted by teddybear

Why GDP per capita for the US is $47,000, but median income is about $2166? Is the data correct? What is the difference?

Let me break it down:

USA
GDP Per Capita: $47K
Median Income (wage): $26K ($2166per month)

[teddybear]

^Hmm, not all American workers earn much. There are many who works at Wallmart, factories, retail... with minimum or bit above minimum wage. But those with managers earn much more. Depend, I think, case by case, depend on the job and where they work. In the case of my American friend his salary still the same for many years, he never earn more than $3000 after tax, and he is without health insurance.

[Celebriton]

I hope the double digit of income growth will continue up to 2020. May be a quadruple target can be achieved. I hope so.....

The problem is, how China industry to react with such fast salary rising? I think, it's government duty to interfere and starting to transform China industry from the manual labor model to automatic production. By subsidy, easy credit, or providing machine to borrow / rent, for examples.

I read an analysis article about China productivity. Did you know that China can still maintain their low cost product up to GDP per capita USD 20,000? It means when Chinese workers salary is USD 1000-1500 a month, the factory can still sell product as cheap as when the workers salary was USD 150 a month. By automatic production.

The other problem will be unemployment. Because an automatic factory use less workers, to keep cost low and competitive. It's government duty too, to provide jobs for this workers. Chinese government can use this workers to build China service sector, which China is still lack. Service sector need a better educated workers, which is very importance for government to improve education....in the right battlefield.

I think, China 2020 and beyond will be hugely depend on how Chinese government invest in their education and building creative culture-environment today. How effective the education is? How creative thinking Chinese student are to solve everyday life problem? How these students use technology and invent something new to solve the everyday problem? How to create a new design and planning a new trend in the market?

If this success, HK in 2020, will look like a backwater city, with a backwater people. Assuming if HK still maintaining their outdated city culture. New problem will happen. Smart, creative, well educated mainland Chinese will dominate all HK high salary job position, lead into another anti-mainland protests on the street.....supported and organized by foreign agents.

[Traceparts]

Originally Posted by Celebriton

Really??? You must be joking! A factory workers and other workers earn USD 400 a month on average? A common thing on the street level? I still need confirmation from another members here.

If that true, it's a really good news. That explain, in the detailed report of China GDP growth, domestic consumption increase at double digit. It's unusual for a Chinese behavior who love to save money.

with 400 USD a month, you can hardly find enough emploee these days, maybe you can 2 years ago.

[Celebriton]

I just recently read an article about it. Many of China graduate student seeking for a job with salary RMB 7000 to 8000 a month. That is far beyond USD 400 a month. A good spirit, but many of them will be disappointing.

Now, I'm a bit confusing. What kind of people in China who still get paid around RMB 1000 a month? I heard a lot of people are still being paid that low.

[andyvia]

Originally Posted by Celebriton

Now, I'm a bit confusing. What kind of people in China who still get paid around RMB 1000 a month? I heard a lot of people are still being paid that low.

What kind of people?

[VECTROTALENZIS]

Farmers? And maybe the poorest people in the cities with lowest income. Like those people collecting bottles and metals.

[Cosmicbliss]

Originally Posted by VECTROTALENZIS

Farmers? And maybe the poorest people in the cities with lowest income. Like those people collecting bottles and metals.

This is off topic but I wasnt sure where to post this, so anyway bear with me

1. Do all cities in China get 24 hours electricity?
2. Do all villages get 24 hours electricity?
3. How many people talk both Mandarin and Cantonese? How many can understand both the languages?
4. Which is the main language of HOng kong? Mandarin or Cantonese or English? Has mandarin gained ground in Guangdong/coastal belt because of influx of workers from the western provinces?
5. Which community among Chinese is considered business savy or enterprising i.e goes into business a lot?
6. Lastly, do different provinces of China have dialects? And if so, do you come across people who can speak many dialects of Chinese?

Thanks in advance.

[big-dog]

Originally Posted by VECTROTALENZIS

Farmers? And maybe the poorest people in the cities with lowest income. Like those people collecting bottles and metals.

And maybe people in the poor west area or corrupting state-owned companies.