Is this the Asian Century? China, India, South Korea and Taiwan in the Age of Intellectual Capitalism

摘要

Because of Asia's remarkable economic performance since the 1980s, some observers have predicted Asia's rise and the coming of a Pacific Century. We doubt this optimistic view. In the knowledge-based economy, ways of amassing wealth have changed, and better criteria for evaluating economic development are needed. This study compares research and development activities of four Asian developing countries - China, India, South Korea and Taiwan - with those of two advanced economies - the USA and Japan - to emphasise a neglected trend. The Asian cases do succeed in the information technology industry, a typical sector in the knowledge-based economy. None the less, Asia may be lagging further behind in relative terms. We show that this may not be the Asian century. In addition, it is possible that the battlefield between multinationals will switch from markets to intellectual property courts.