China’s ‘K-shaped’ economy is divided not just by sector, but geography

China’s so-called K-shaped economy has attracted attention in recent months, as official data shows a disparity between the country’s fast-growing hi-tech industries and stagnant consumer sector. But a similar pattern is also taking shape geographically, with regions benefiting unequally from the tech boom. Chinese provinces have now released their growth data for the first half of the year, and the figures show a clear bifurcation between thriving tech hubs and the rest of the country. The...