What Hard Landing? China's GDP May Grow 8% For Years, Scholar Says

So much for those forecasts of a hard landing by China’s economy. (See related story here.)

The country’s economy may be able to grow by 8-8.5% for the next decade, says a senior scholar at one of the country’s top research institutions.

Li Yang, the deputy president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, noted, however, that such growth would be a decline from the country’s recent pace. China’s GDP expanded by 9.1% in the latest quarter. Slower expansion would result from the uncertain international environment and structural adjustment by China, Li said, according to a report in today’s Shanghai Securities News.

“I believe the crisis basically hasn’t passed,” Li said of the global economy. Li noted that China’s trade surplus this year would fall to about 2% of its GDP.

U.S. business leaders have been in Hawaii for the past few days at a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperaton CEO Summit, looking to expand their business in China and the rest of Asia. Among those with a big — or potentially big — stake in China and that met Chinese President Hu Jintao there were Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, Walmart Asia President Scott Price, and Caterpillar Chairman Doug Oberhelman, according to reports. Caterpillar last Friday announced a plan to acquire a Hong Kong-listed mining equipment maker whose business is focused in China for $886 million.