Wages in China. Wage levels in China have increased continually over the last two decades as the economy has developed and the private sector has created new employment opportunities. However, disparities among geographic regions, industrial sectors and between top executives and ordinary workers have also increased significantly, widening the rich-poor gap. Moreover, wage increases for China’s lowest paid workers have often been eroded by higher costs of living, and the issue of wage arrears remains a serious and unresolved problem throughout the country. Legal provisions on working hours and wages The standard workweek in China is 40 hours (eight hours per day, five days per week).
The 1994 Labour Law stipulates that overtime shall be paid for any work exceeding standard working hours and that overtime shall not exceed three hours a day or 36 hours per month (Article 41). The minimum wage China's Minimum Wage Levels (per month) by Region Source: MOHRSS Minimum Wage Levels in Asia (US$) Income disparity. The World Factbook. ShowIntroduction :: CHINA Panel - Collapsed For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation.
After World War II, the Communist Party of China under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, MAO's successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically but political controls remain tight. Since the early 1990s, China has increased its global outreach and participation in international organizations. Tapping China’s luxury-goods market. China will account for about 20 percent, or 180 billion renminbi ($27 billion ), of global luxury sales in 2015, according to new McKinsey research. Even during the global recession in 2009, sales of luxury goods in the mainland rose by 16 percent, to about 64 billion renminbi—down from the 20 percent growth of previous years but far better than the performance of many other major luxury markets.
To get a better idea of the dynamics, McKinsey surveyed more than 1,500 luxury consumers in 17 Chinese cities in spring 2010. Three findings stood out. Shifting attitudes At a time of rapidly rising incomes, widely available luxury products (and information about them), and shifting attitudes toward the display of wealth, more Chinese consumers than ever feel comfortable buying luxury goods. Interest in them is moving beyond handbags, jewelry, fashion, and the like. Exhibit 1 Enlarge Greater sophistication Price transparency contributes to this dynamic. Exhibit 2 New geographic markets. Goldman Sachs. Richemont-warns-of-luxury-slowdown-in-china-as-third-quarter-sales-miss-estimates-9064097. Sales were up 3 per cent to €2.94 billion but demand for its expensive watches in China waned.
The Swiss group’s figures are in contrast to luxury fashion brand Burberry which yesterday reported a rise in sales growth in the region. The group, which also owns online retailer Net-a-Porter.com and clothing brands including Chloé, reported organic sales up 9 per cent compared to analysts expecting a 12 per cent rise. Richemont said wholesalers, particularly in the Asian-Pacific region, were cautious. The group’s watches and jewellery have been hit by a Chinese crackdown on alleged gif giving and bribes at a government level. A number of luxury brands have been hit by the change. Allegra Perry, luxury goods analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, said that despite it being a year on since the “implementation of anti-gifting measures in fall 2012” and the “potential uplift from the earlier timing of Chinese New Year” Richemont’s Chinese sales growth was still weak.