Despite its continuing rapid growth, China faces a host of domestic and international challenges that — without adequate reforms — might derail it from the widely forecast path to global economic pre-eminence, said Elizabeth Economy, senior fellow and director for Asian studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.
And while Chinese leaders clearly recognize these challenges — ranging from environmental problems to corruption among Communist Party ranks — they appear reluctant to take the necessary steps to ensure good governance and the rule of law, the expert told the Nov. 12 symposium.
Forecasts abound that China will replace Japan in the coming years as the world's second-largest economy and is on course to overtake the United States as the biggest economy by 2040 or 2050.