Since China’s reform and opening up policies began in the late 1970s, the country’s average annual economic growth rate has hovered near 10 percent. Currently, China’s gross domestic product is second only to the United States; it's the world’s largest exporter and importer and the largest holder of foreign exchange reserves. And along with China’s remarkable economic rise has come a significant increase in China’s role in both regional and global development and governance.
With the economies of the United States, the European Union and Japan reeling from weak growth and burdensome debt levels, China has emerged as a key driver of global economic growth, contributing, along with other major emerging economies, nearly two thirds of new global economic output. As Daniel Burstein has argued, a power shift toward Asia is under way, and “China lies at the heart of this Asia shift." According to many projections, China will surpass the United States as the largest economy in the world by 2030. China has benefited greatly from integrating into the world market and participating in the existing international economic system, because this has helped the country reform its old planning system and rapidly assimilate into the global economy. This process is set to continue in the future because China has no reason to reverse a course that has had such positive results. As a newly emerging power, China will naturally become a more important player in helping to shape regional and global development and governance.
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