Comparative Study of Knowledge-Based Economic Strength Between China and the USA

Entering the era of knowledge economy, knowledge is the important source of economic growth and is the basis for ensuring the sustainable development of economy even under any disadvantageous environment. This paper addresses the comparison of economic strength between China and the USA from a view of knowledge economy. To this end, based on analysis of previous studies, the authors conceptualize the knowledge-based economic strength, establish the indicators system for its comparison between China and the USA, and conduct the comparison and analysis based on them. The findings are that (1) while China gets ahead of the USA in exports of high-tech manufactures and numbers of knowledge resources, the USA gets ahead of China in GDP per capita, receipts of intellectual properties, human capital, financial expenditure, and ICT infrastructure, (2) China has mostly focused on quantitative growth of knowledge resources rather than qualitative growth, (3) China has devoted many efforts to the decrease of differences in almost all aspects of knowledge-based economic strength from the USA, and (4) for both countries, degrees of contributions of resource indicators to GDP per capita are different. Given that competition between China and the USA enters the new stage, this comparative study may serve as the policy basis in taking the technological measures for further strengthening its own economic strength for China.