The coronavirus pandemic raises many questions about the U.S.-China relationship – including how the two countries will address globalization, supply chains, technology and the environment going forward. Porter Schutt talks with two long-time students of China, Andy Rothman, investment strategist at Matthews Asia, and Linda Yueh, economist at the University of Oxford, to delve into the economic, cultural and geopolitical implications of the crisis.

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Episode Introduction

Porter Schutt: I’ve been fascinated with China for 28 years, since I first went there in 1992 and started working in Hong Kong. The story of China is about human potential and about power. And right now, it also represents the most important contest of ideas in the world. When China began to open up and grow, many people assumed it would become more like a Western Democracy. Instead, it’s gone its own way. It offers a different economic and political model and alternative values. That’s why this coronavirus moment matters so much. Some big waves of change are likely to hit China.

After the pandemic, the rest of the world may think differently about global supply chains and how much we rely on China to make essential equipment and supplies. That could leave China weaker. On the other hand, if China can manage the impact of the crisis and emerge relatively stronger, it’ll take another leap forward on the road to becoming the world’s biggest economy. And even more importantly perhaps, China may be able to say to its people and to everyone else who is watching around the world, “Look, our system works.” What would that mean for the balance of power in the world?

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Guests

Andy Rothman

Andy Rothman

Investment Strategist, Matthews Asia

Andy Rothman is an investment strategist at Matthews Asia. He is principally responsible for developing research focused on China’s ongoing economic and political developments while also complementing the broader investment team with in-depth analysis on Asia. In addition, Rothman plays a key role in communicating to clients and the media the firm’s perspectives and latest insights into China and the greater Asia region. Prior to joining Matthews Asia in 2014, Rothman spent 14 years as CLSA’s China macroeconomic strategist, where he conducted analysis into China and delivered his insights to its clients. Previously, Rothman spent 17 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, with a diplomatic career focused on China, including as head of the macroeconomics and domestic policy office of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. In total, Rothman has lived and worked in China for more than 20 years. He earned an M.A. in public administration from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and a B.A. from Colgate University. He is a proficient Mandarin speaker.
Linda Yueh, Ph.D.

Linda Yueh, Ph.D.

Fellow in Economics, St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford; Adjunct Professor of Economics, London Business School

Dr. Yueh is Fellow in Economics at St Edmund Hall, Oxford University and Adjunct Professor of Economics at London Business School. She is Visiting Professor at LSE IDEAS, London School of Economics and Political Science's foreign policy centre, and Associate Fellow (Global Economy and Finance Department & U.S. and the Americas Programme) at Chatham House. Professor Yueh is Chair of the LSE Economic Diplomacy Commission. She was Visiting Professor of Economics at Peking University. She is a TV and radio presenter, including for BBC Radio 4 and the World Service, as well as having fronted BBC TV series, such as The New Middle Class, Next Billionaires, and Working Lives. Dr. Yueh is Chair of the Royal Commonwealth Society and Trustee of the Coutts Foundation and Malaria No More UK. She is a Non-Executive Director of the following publicly listed companies on the London Stock Exchange: Rentokil Initial, a FTSE 100 company, Fidelity China Special Situations PLC, a FTSE 250 investment trust, and Chair of Baillie Gifford's The Schiehallion Fund, listed on the Specialist Fund Segment of the Main Market. She serves on the Advisory Board of LSE IDEAS and on the Policy Committee of the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP), both at the London School of Economics. She is a Fellow (FRSA) of the Royal Society of Arts. She is a widely published author and Editor of the Routledge Economic Growth and Development book series. Her latest book, The Great Economists: How Their Ideas Can Help Us Today is published by Viking/ Penguin Random House (The Times's Best Business Books of the Year) and What Would the Great Economists Do? How Twelve Brilliant Minds Would Solve Today's Biggest Problems (Newsweek's Best Books of the Year) published by Picador/ Macmillan in the U.S. She is represented by Janklow & Nesbit. She was Chief Business Correspondent for BBC News and presenter of Talking Business with Linda Yueh for BBC World TV and BBC News Channel based in Singapore. She had been Economics Editor and anchor at Bloomberg TV in London. Previously, she was an attorney at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in New York. Professor Yueh has advised the World Bank, European Commission, Asian Development Bank, World Economic Forum in Davos, among others. She was a Non-Executive Director of the LSE-listed companies: JPMorgan Asian Investment Trust and Baillie Gifford's Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust. She was previously Co-Chair of the Global Cities Business Alliance (GCBA) of London First; Board Member of London & Partners; Advisory Board Member of The Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF); advisor to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC); and Advisory Board member of the Huxley Summit 2019.

 

 

Host

Porter Schutt

Porter Schutt

Portfolio Manager; Head of Delaware Office, Brown Advisory

Porter is a partner and serves as a portfolio manager and head of the Delaware office. He joined Brown Advisory after 13 years at Marvin & Palmer Associates, Inc., a global equity management firm, where he was a partner and portfolio manager for emerging markets and domestic large-cap growth equity portfolios. Prior to that, he spent four years in institutional sales for Peregrine Securities in Hong Kong before spending four years in Hong Kong with Goldman Sachs Asia.

 

 

Background Reading

 

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