China's Exaggerated Rise?

The rapid growth of China's economy has aroused fear in some quarters and giddy excitement in others. Perhaps folks are getting carried away: in the NY Times, MIT's Lester Thurow argues that China's official statistics are greatly exaggerated. Based on China's electricity consumption, Thurow guesstimates an annual growth rate of 4.5-6%, which is brisk, but far short of the official reports of 10% or more.