Capital in the twenty-first century in China

We propose a method of constructing a general capital stock à la Piketty for China from 1952 to 2015 (Part 1). The elasticities of income with respect to this capital are econometrically estimed through equations which also integrate human capital and R&D. The tests are performed within frameworks of modern neoclassical macrodynamic models. On this basis, we calculate an implicit rate of return of capital to test the validity of what Piketty states as a “fundamental inequality”, comparing rate of return on capital and income growth rate in the long run. This inequality is verified, but appears to be tendentiously challenged over the last decade. Then, Piketty's “second law”, arguing that the coefficient of capital tends to be equal to the ratio between savings rate and income growth rate, is examined. This “second law” is to be viewed as a process of asymptotic convergence in the long term (Part 2). These results are compared with new estimates for the post-1978 sub-period of “capitalism with Chinese characteristics”, but the fundamental inequality is no longer verified, and it is not reasonable to affirm the validity of the “second law” (Part 3). Finally, we address the issue of the inequalities in China.