The emergence of China as an economic superpower

After a second-day rally in Asia ex-Japan, key electronic makers such as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. and Samsung Electronics Co. rose to recent highs on optimistic consumer spending forecasts in the US.

Among some of the other winners is PetroChina Co., the largest company in the world after topping ExxoMobile Corp.'s market cap by 39%; China Mobile Ltd., now larger than its US counterpart AT&T Inc., but China Mobile only brings in around 60% of AT&T's revenue; and Industrial & Commerical Bank of China Ltd., which has almost twice the size of America's third largest bank, Bank of America.

Although interest rates have been raised to a 9-year high by the central People's Bank of China, little effect has come from its attempt to curb inflation and investment in equity and real estate markets.