👉 2017, year of the rooster, will be a make or break year for China. For the past couple of years, the China economy has run on credit at a pace of around 30% every year. As recently released data pointed out, in 2016 the government extended a record-breaking 12.56 trillion yuan in loans (in 2015, the figure was 11.72 trillion yuan). Latest debt to GDP stands at 280%, the highest among developing countries.
👉 Pollution has taken the form of a new life. From 'Beijing Blue' to 'Beijing Cough'. Its consequences are not just short-term but worryingly long-term. In December 2016, the China government issued its first ever red alert, the highest level in its four-tier pollution alert system. The real long-term effects on health is still unknown because such high levels of pollution have not been seen before -- even after taking into account the London smog of 1950s and the smog that beset Los Angeles in the 1970s.