China has come a long way since the last time its growth was threatened by a financial crisis outside its borders, as the graphic below shows. Compared with the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98, China today has larger external surpluses, a more stable banking system and stronger government finances. Its companies are more profitable and the cost of borrowing to expand is lower. Those improved economic fundamentals are reasons why many analysts think China is well positioned to ride out the latest crisis.

But there are other problems that complicate that optimistic picture. The nation's debt burden has increased somewhat, though not to levels that would be considered high elsewhere. Longstanding social divides have worsened, energy security is more of an issue, and the economic imbalance between robust exports and investment and lagging consumption has intensified. One of those problems could turn out to a key vulnerability for China as the global strains intensify.

经济增长上一次因其他地区的经济危机而受到威胁以来，中国已经发生了很多变化（如下图表所示）。与1997-98年亚洲金融危机时的状况相比，今天的中国拥有更大贸易顺差、更加稳定的银行系统以及更强大的政府财政能力。中国公司盈利能力提高，业务扩展成本更低。这些经济基本面改善的种种迹象也是众多分析人士认为中国状况良好、足以平稳度过此次经济危机的原因。

但是，中国的其他问题令这种乐观前景增添了变数。中国的债务负担有所增加，不过与其他国家相比仍较低。长期存在的贫富差距进一步扩大，能源安全也是个问题，强劲的出口和投资与落后的消费之间的不平衡状态进一步加剧。随着全球经济状况恶化，这些问题中的某一个有可能成为中国经济的一个致命弱点。