After decades in which economic development was driven primarily by investments and exports, China is now an economy in transition. As its people grew richer, consumption boomed. It is today the world’s fastest-growing consumer market.
SINGAPORE (Dec 13): Last week, we wrote about our investment thesis for Alibaba Group Holding, China’s leading e-commerce player, and why we like the stock for its long-term potential that is underpinned by rising consumerism in the country.
Thanks to economic reforms and a shift to a more market-based economy since the late 1970s, China has enjoyed strong sustained growth. It became the factory for the world on the back of cheap and abundant labour. This resulted in a rapid rise in per-capita incomes, which lifted hundreds of millions from extreme poverty into middle-income class within a relatively short period of time.
