, Columnist
Who Wins From Brexit? China
A disunited Europe will be less of a check on Chinese assertiveness.
China's already been able to play one European country off another.
Photographer: WPA Pool/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
The United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union is creating a lot of losers: London’s finance industry. British Prime Minister David Cameron. The pound. The grand cause of European integration. But out of all of the market turmoil and uncertainty will emerge at least one big winner: China.
In the short term, of course, China’s struggling economy may take a hit from the chaos in the EU, its second-largest trading partner. A smaller, less-stable European market and more cash-strapped consumers aren’t good news for Chinese exporters. Over the longer term, though, Brexit is almost certainly in China’s economic and political interests.