Delete comment from: Captain Capitalism
I concur with the use of "backdoor" measures, and electricity is a good one (one that I have used for three decades).
However, I am perplexed by your conclusion on China. Perhaps I am not reading the chart correctly. It shows GDP growth of 10 to 12% in recent years, while electricity use has been growing at a rate of close to 16% in the same years. So it seems that official GDP growth rate is LESS than the growth rate for electric usage. This implies that China's GDP is growing FASTER than reported.
The chart is misleading in that the electricity growth rate is shown with a different scale. The two measures should be shown with a common, equal scale, to avoid giving a misleading visual. The blue line for the electricity growth rate would be above the GDP growth rate line if the scales for each were the same.
Aug 25, 2007, 9:51:00 AM
Posted to Backdoor Economics