Author Interview: Dr. Fengbo Zhang - A leading Chinese Economist

Aug. 30, 2008 - PRLog -- Dr. Zhang received a Ph.D. in Economics from Kyoto University in Japan. He was a Senior Research Fellow, the Founder and Head of the Chinese Macroeconomic Research Group at the STATE COUNCIL Research Center in China, helped Deng Xiaoping leadership for top policy-making in 1980s. He was a visiting scholar at Harvard University, in 1990s he represented top Japanese companies for the rapid investment boom in the USA, and joined Fuji Bank NY Headquarters. In 2003, he joined Citigroup, Senior Vice President for Citibank Lending. He has published more than 10 books and is regularly invited to speak to Chinese government and business leaders.
The book website http://sites.google.com/site/fengbozhangchina/
Homepage http://fengbozhang.googlepages.com/home


Question: Where did you grow up and was reading and writing a part of your life? Who were your earliest influences and why?

Answer: I was born in China, I spend my childhood during the Cultural Revolution in China. After graduated from high school, I had to go countryside, a poor village to work hard as a farmer. I thought I had to spend my whole life to till the fields. But I still hold a hope, continued self-study, including University's major text-books at night, while I continued the hard work during the day time. After two years, when the culture revolution ends, universities were re-opened. I passed examination, attended Shanghai Foreign Language University with major in Japanese. Due to newly re-opened university with hard conditions, there were not so many textbooks, of course, no copy machine. We had to copy each textbook by hand. The hard conditions trained us very strong studying spirit.
After granulated from University, I passed the examination and became the research fellow of Chinese Social Science Academy. Then I went to Japan to study western economics.

Deng Xiaoping's reform and open policy created China's new era, also bring us new life.
Chinese current new leaders President Hu Jingtao, Primer Wen Jiabao accumulated rich leadership experience, professional knowledge and international view. They are leading China to become a member of world leaders.

Q: In A CHINESE ECONOMIST'S JOURNEY you discuss that you helped top leaders in China with policy-making in the 1980's. In the 1990's, you represented top Japanese companies during the rapid investment boom in the USA. This must have been a wonderful journey -- Looking back now would you have done anything different? Were there any economic ideas then concerning USA and the rest of the world that didn't have an outcome you thought would happen?

A: I feel so great as my life met all those challenges, always catch the world's most exciting events, and stay on the top. I experienced culture revolution's most fighting period, became early overseas studying Chinese, helped Chinese top leadership for decision-making; represented top Japanese companies for the rapid investment boom in the USA; defeated the World Financial Storm; experienced 9/11, currently continued success during the USA mortgage crisis.

Q: In A CHINESE ECONOMIST'S JOURNEY you discuss your experience working with mortgages for four or more years -- What is your outlook/perspective on the future of USA housing market?

A: The USA mortgage market's fluctuations are very limited. I have been in charge of mortgage lending more than 5 years, I have never had a bad debt, currently continued the best performance.

The main battlefield of this crisis is in the USA financial markets. Sub-prime mortgage securitization dealers, brokers and investors prefer the high-risk, short-term high return. The overly high expectations and fanatical devotion and hyping created the financial bubble speculation. Fluctuations in the housing market, with investor's confidence shattered, led to the related enterprise bonds and asset valuation plunge, which resulted in panic, and a slumped USA stock market, and even the whole global financial market, strongly affecting global investors.

The billions of valuable housing property that turned worthless overnight by crazy financial markets, brings one of the greatest opportunities of a lifetime for sober and rational investors. In Chapter four of A CHINESE ECONOMIST'S JOURNEY, I detailed many business opportunities during the mortgage crisis.

Q: In A CHINESE ECONOMIST'S JOURNEY you discuss 9/11 - Where were you that day and your thoughts now years after the tragedy?

A: 9/11 changed New York, USA and the world, also changed many people's lives. My office in the World Trade Center disappeared. Many of my colleagues and friends lost their lives. I was lucky that my meeting at world Trade Center was postponed. 9/11 made us feel how valuable life is, and how important peace is.

Q: ANALYSIS OF CHINESE MACROECONOMY won the first place prize from Chinese National Book Award in 1987 and has been used for 20 years for training in major universities.What gained your first interest in economics and what would you hope to achieve in the future?

A: In 1980, I went to study in Japan, was set to study the Japanese language and its literature. I witnessed Japan's economic miracle achieved, and I thought for a long time : China's Human Sciences has a brilliant history spanning over several thousand years, and the Natural sciences in China had largely caught up with the rest of the world. However, China's economy was still backward, and the key to this lies in the lack of economic theory guiding China's economic development. Therefore, I decided to study economics.

I have been regularly invited to speak to Chinese government and business leaders, and write report and articles. My opinions are mostly criticism. I point out problems, suggest improvement, and always received good responses. As Chinese say "Bitter good medicine "or "Bitter, better medicine".

As in Chapter four of A CHINESE ECONOMIST'S JOURNEY, one year ago when USA mortgage crisis occurred, I was invited to write report to Chinese top leaders ,as many Chinese media, scholars suggested: tightening of mortgage lending, strict approval conditions, increasing the threshold, proportion of down payment etc.

I published my report, strongly criticized it, point out that "The housing problem in China is radically different than the problem in the United States. The wrong prescription can cause serious and irreversible damage." I requested that "Must take strict precautions to prevent some financial institutions tightening lending practices, increasing harsh conditions, raising the threshold, increasing the down payment etc. to discriminating or make it difficult for the vast numbers of low-middle income people with limited financial conditions and payment ability, to purchase their first home, which will trigger social unrest and turmoil. " My opinion received almost unanimously supports, and changed Chinese government policy-making.

Q: Your opinion on current events? The Olympics?

The Beijing Olympics is a milestone, indicated China became a world super nation in sports, as well as in economy. As the conclusion of the chapter One of my book A CHINESE ECONOMIST'S JOURNEY "It is as if seeing that after 500 years of sleeping, with a painful struggle and earth shaking roar, the Eastern Lion is waking up. "

Q: What's next?

A: 20 years ago, when I was working for China's top decision making, I completed more than 100 government reports and academic research paper t, published 10 books in two years. Then I concentrated on financial business. I continued to make reports, research papers, and make speeches, but in more than 20 years, this is the first time I published those two books, in one month.

More than 20 years rich experience make me can not stop to write, detail of any one of those exciting event can create a big book. I will enjoy writing more books in future.