Toward the Chinese dream

Starting in November 2012, President Xi Jinping began to use the term "Chinese dream" in order to describe the nation's "national rejuvenation, the improvement of the people's livelihoods, prosperity, the construction of a better society and military strengthening."

None of these dreams will come true automatically. Before the Xi-Li era, difficult challenges were tackled with more stimulus, leveraging, and deferred reforms. In the Xi-Li era, complacency is not an option. As a result, the government has opted for no stimulus, deleveraging, and structural reforms.

In the West, the term has often been seen as a kind of a mirror-image of the "American dream." That, however, is silly. Throughout its history, most Americans have enjoyed far higher living standards than ordinary Chinese. Also, unlike China, the United States did not have to cope with a "century of humiliation." Different nations have different needs -- and different dreams.

The roots of the Chinese dream originate from the history of colonialism, the end of the imperial era and the beginning of the republican era. After the Xinhai Revolution in 1911, Dr Sun Yat-sen inspired an entire generation with his hopes for the future. Those dreams were influenced by his visits in America, the U.S. progressive movement and particularly Lincoln's Gettysburg Address -- "government of the people, by the people, for the people."

During those difficult but hopeful years, Sun outlined his "three principles of the people:" a sense of nationhood, the pursuit of socialist democracy and people's welfare. In order to survive, grow and prosper among the industrializing West, Sun believed that China would have to be united as a nation, guided by socialism with Chinese characteristics, enjoy economic growth but ensure people's social welfare.

It is this dream that inspires the long-term efforts of President Xi and Premier Li as well.

If China's economic development can continue in a peaceful manner, growth could remain around 7 percent in the near term and about 5-6 percent in the medium term. By the early 2020s, China's economy would surpass that of the United States in size.

But what's far more important, the Chinese dream would spread to rising middle classes across the nation.

Dr. Dan Steinbock is the research director of international business at the India, China and America Institute (USA) and a visiting fellow at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (China). For more, see www.differencegroup.net