China – one of the world’s fastest growing economies in recent years – has not been immune to the recession sweeping the global economy.  Its export-driven economy has slowed, and unemployment is growing.  The Chinese government has introduced a stimulus package and is encouraging citizens to spend more.  But whether they actually do so may require a change in cultural dynamics.  Without the social safety net of Western countries, the average Chinese family saves about 30 percent of its income (most American families save almost nothing).
How China shifts from an export …

Like their counterparts in Europe and North America, Chinese Olympics fans are turning to multimedia sources for coverage of the 2008 Beijing Games, according to a recent Nielsen survey of Internet users in China.
In addition to watching the Games on TV, three of four people in China will keep abreast of Olympics events via streaming online video, one-third will rely on mobile phone text updates, and 14% will view video clips of the Games on their mobile phones, Nielsen’s survey found.
Two in 10 Chinese plan to use online video streaming as their main method of …