As MIT political scientist and China expert Ed Steinfeld says, "China [is] one of the most entrepreneurial places on earth."
Perhaps this observation doesn't surprise you, given what's been happening to the Chinese economy in recent years. But you might not recognize how widespread entrepreneurship is in China, or why the country is so full of entrepreneurs.
What the Data Show
The latest numbers from the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) show that China's rate of self-employment far exceeds that in the U.S.—51.2% versus 7.2%—a gap that hasn't changed much since 2001, when the data first became readily available.
Lest you think that self-employment represents something other than entrepreneurship, consider some other statistics. According to the 2009 GEM report, China exceeds the U.S. in its rate of nascent entrepreneurship (a measure of people in the process of starting a business), rate of ownership of new businesses, and rate of ownership of more established businesses. And, as the figure to the right shows , the differences aren't trivial.
To read the full, original article click on this link: If You Want to See Entrepreneurs, Go to China - BusinessWeek
Author: Scott Shane
