Cut the debt burden? Politics gets in the way

New Haven

AS leaders of the Chinese Communist Party assembled at their secretive annual conclave at the Beidaihe seaside resort, one might think that, from an economic perspective, they could relax on the beach with few worries.

Unlike in 2015 and 2016, fears that declining foreign exchange reserves would force a devaluation of China's currency, the renminbi, have receded. Thanks to stricter capital controls and rebounding confidence in China's growth prospects, the outflow of capital has slowed. China's currency has even appreciated this year.