
Off the back of a thriving coal industry, the local government has been building a new city for one million people called Kangbashi. It sits virtually empty and property prices are falling.
Even in the old city of Dongsheng where people live and work, some 45 minutes drive away, a wave of investment has backfired. Cranes sit idle over unfinished skyscrapers and migrant workers are fleeing.
The swing in fortune -- residents and property agents say prices have dropped by up to a third -- is a severe example of what is happening in cities across China, including Shanghai and Beijing.
How do we learn from that? Or are we suppose to feel sorry for them? I wonder if there are any articles that depict the peoples opinion in that area. Why don't they want to live there. What a mystery.
ReplyDeleteSomething about this Ordos district reminds me of Autoworld, but on a much greater scale. Whoever came up with the Ordos district makes the people who came up with Autoworld look good by comparison, just for failing on a much smaller scale. But actually, Ordos reminds me even more of the economic problems of Las Vegas. One point to be taken from this is there's plenty of problems nationwide and worldwide, not just a Michael Moore type obsession with Flint's problems.
ReplyDeleteThat's a beautiful museum.
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