China is Not Undergoing Japanification

China's Premier Li Qiang delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the China Development Forum at the Diaoyutai Guesthouse in Beijing, March 23, 2025. *Credit: Adek Berry/Pool Photo via AP Images*

One of the most popular frameworks for thinking about China’s economy today is the experience of Japan in the 1990s. The attraction is understandabl

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China is Not Undergoing Japanification

Comparing the China of today with the Japan of the 1990s won’t help fix the Chinese economy’s problems.

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