(ECNS) -- The Chinese GDP per capita will reach $12,803 by 2020 from nearly $7575 in 2014, China Business News reported, citing economic research.
In 2020, China's GDP will reach the world's average income level and be at the threshold of a high income society, according to a report titled "2049 Strategy from the China Academy of New Supply-site Economics" released on May 17.
China is likely to have a nominal GDP of $29.1 trillion, overtaking America ($28.4 trillion) as the world's biggest economy. By 2049, the country's GDP will reach $155.5 trillion, and comprise 29.4 percent of the world's total GDP.
However, exceeding the level of $12,000 per capita does not mean China is safely out of the "Middle Income Trap" (MIT). It remains to be seen whether it can stably advance between 2020 and 2030, warns Huang Jianhui, a financial expert.
According to the World Bank, the MIT hurts middle-income economic competitiveness both in terms of labor pricing and in access to advanced technologies. MIT incomes typically range between $1,000 and $12,000. In 2014, China was within the MIT range with a GDP per capita of $7,575.
Overcoming the MIT is a small probability event, according to Wang Qing, an investment expert. Based on global changes from 1960 to 2008, the majority of economies in the MIT fell back to low incomes while only a small fraction eventually went on to become high income nations.
