China’s Illicit Outflows Were US$1.08 Trillion from 2002-2011
By Clark Gascoigne, September 23, 2014
GFI’s Current Methodology Finds Illicit Outflows from China Totaled US$1.08 Trillion from 2002-2011, Not US$2.83 Trillion from 2005-2011
With the anti-corruption drive underway in China, our estimates of illicit financial flows have been in the news a lot lately. This is for good reason; there is a ton of illicit money gushing out of China.
But, if you have been reading multiple stories on this topic, you might be a little confused about the precise scale of the problem facing China.
Prominent outlets such as the Financial Times, the South China Morning Post, and China Daily, among others, have all reported over the past week that:
“The US-based non-profit group Global Financial Integrity estimates illegal flows out of China amounted to $2.83tn between 2005 and 2011.”
While other major sources such as Businessweek and the Heritage Foundation have stated:
“Between 2002 and 2011, $1.08 trillion of illicit funds were spirited out of China, estimates Washington (D.C.)-based nonprofit Global Financial Integrity.”
These estimates are widely different. Some of these outlets must be incorrect in their reporting, right?