USA-China Economic and Political Relations: Assessing the Concept of Conditional Unipolarism

Abstract

The current work analyzes the process of opening and subsequent rise of China’s economy as a U.S. strategy to overcome the crisis of Fordism. The impact has been notable as regards China’s deindustrialization process and the current trade and financial balances. This impact is analyzed here on a political level and as pertains to the economic and power institutions in the U.S. The article addresses the macro-economic restrictions faced by the U.S. in the context of a competitive yuan. The main conclusion is that the prevalent “society” with China – part of the response to the 1970s crisis, which will presumably continue in the future – sets up limitations on the instruments available for the U.S. to achieve the return to the industrial areas operating today in Asia.