Tibet Outpaces China’s Growth as Investment Jumps: Chart of Day

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Feb. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Tibet’s economy will grow at least 14 percent this year and may outpace China’s for a decade as the government boosts spending in the autonomous region to improve social stability, China International Capital Corp. said.

Chinese President Hu Jintao last month led the biggest policy meeting on Tibet since 2001, setting a target to bring per-capita incomes close to the national average by 2020.

The CHART OF THE DAY tracks changes in gross domestic product in the past three decades. Tibet’s economy grew faster than China’s as a whole since 1994, and the chart shows how output surged after the previous four major policy conferences.

“Growth in Tibet will continue to be the pacesetter for at least 10 years,” Xing Ziqiang, a CICC economist in Beijing, said by phone on Feb. 5. “It’s all about maintaining social stability. Beijing will build more roads there and boost local industries such as tourism.”

Tibet, which had its worst riots against the central government for almost two decades in July, will see investment from China jump by almost 500 million yuan ($73.2 million) to more than 2.3 billion yuan this year. Tibetan stocks listed in Shanghai rallied last week on the spending plans, with travel services provider Tibet Shengdi Co. climbing 22 percent.

Tibet has been ruled by the Beijing-based government since 1951. Though it is recognized as part of China by the U.S., President Barack Obama plans to meet the Dalai Lama, the region’s leader-in-exile, later this month, overlooking warnings from China. The Himalayan region bordering Nepal has a population of 2.9 million, about the same as the U.S. state of Arkansas, and a land mass about triple that of California’s.

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Tibet Outpaces China's Growth as Investment Jumps: Chart of Day - Bloomberg.com