It could be a trip to Sydney’s Taronga Zoo, a compelling new Korean drama, an upmarket store inLondon, a multi-million-dollar footballer, an online payment app, a robot, or an electric car. Thecommon thread is that all roads, wherever they are in the world, eventually lead to China in someway or another. It’s just a question of joining the dots.

　　While the rest of the world may fear a Chinese slowdown, its economy is still contributing more andmore to global growth. The US may be the world's biggest economy but China is the most important,with its growth and changing tastes having a far reaching impact all over the globe. Theseconnections are changing, both in terms of size and in shape with countries stretching from Chile toAustralia and Ethiopia to Korea seeing the growing influence of China on their own domesticfortunes. With China's developing economy, new countries may be the main beneficiaries of thenext leg of China's growth and the increasing demand for higher-end products and services.

　　These links have become more multi-layered and complex. Whether they concern trade, the flow ofcapital, technology, the private sector or tourism, it is this deeper relationship with many differentcountries and industries which now has to be understood, beyond the familiar statistics about copper,chemicals and iron ore. This report sets out to examine these changes and what they mean forChina and the rest of the world.

　　The first chapter looks at how China is now the world's most important economy in terms of growth,now accounting for 12% of global GDP and affecting the health of economies in countries all over theworld. The second shows that China is moving up the export value chain and becoming a moreinfluential global consumer of goods and services, both domestically and overseas. Over time, thecountry will become a greater capital exporter due to more overseas direct investment and portfolioinvestment. The last chapter looks at a paradox – China is still a poor country despite being theworld's second largest economy. This brings large trade and investment opportunities, as well aschallenges that require greater opening of both markets and minds.