Some interesting thoughts about China

Here are some fascinating highlights from McKinsey entitled, “Preparing for China’s Urban Billion.”

- By 2025, China will have 221 cities with more than one million
inhabitants – compared with 35 in Europe today.

- China’ urban population will expand from 572 million in 2005 to 926
million in 2025. Over 350 million people will move from rural areas
to the cities – more than the population of the United States.

- By 2025, China could have 15 super-cities with average populations
of 25 million people. 41 percent of China’s higher income middle
class will live in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Wuhan, Chongqing,
Chengdu, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

- China will build almost 40 billion square meters of floor space
over the next 20 years, requiring construction of 50,000 new
skyscrapers – the equivalent of ten New York Cities.

- Up to 170 cities could meet planning criteria for mass-transit
systems by 2025, more than twice the current number in Europe. This
could promise to be the greatest boom in mass-transit construction in
history.

- China’s urban economy will generate 90 percent of its GDP by 2025.
Urban China will become a dominant global market with its aggregate
consumption almost twice, and disposable income over two times, those
of Germany.

China Golf Show 2008

The 2008 Beijing China Golf Show wrapped up over the past weekend. The show continues to grow each year as the golf industry continues to grow at a fast past on the Mainland. The majority of exhibitors are American, Australian, and local golf companies. Golf giants like Titleist, Taylormade, Mizuno all have a presence along with services and large equipment manufacturers like Toro and John Deere.

For the most part the show is like the show in the United States where it is a networking event for golf industry professionals in China. Some of the newer offerings this year were an expanded presence of golf travel as the RMB has appreciated nicely the Chinese have more in their pocket as they travel overseas. In addition, this year a nice driving range at the back of the show was added as a nice amenity for locals to try different clubs. Many manufacturers pushed fitting clubs rather than simply buying clubs off the rack as many Chinese are custom to doing.

Here is the show website for more details: http://www.chinagolfshow.com/en/gz_show2007.asp