US Imperialism Still Dominant Economic Force In Australia

Ned K.

Much has been said in the mainstream media about the "threat' of Chinese investment in Australia. 

From the leasing of the Port of Darwin to attempted purchase of Kidman cattle properties to high rise apartments to a new milk factory at Tantanoola in the South East of South Australia this media frenzy has been developed to create a scapegoat for people's concerns about the destruction of whole industries in Australia and resulting job losses. 

Blaming the Chinese lets the main cause of the loss of industries, US imperialism off the hook. It is the US more than any other foreign investment power in Australia that has led to the destruction of whole industries in Australia, led by the car industry, to suit their global economic needs. It is the US which at the same time has trapped Australia into becoming its willing military partner to keep the 'free world' safe from a rising Asia, particularly China.

It is convenient for the US to have the Australian people believe that the Chinese are investing so heavily in Australia that it is only a matter of time before they have taken over the place. The "yellow hordes" fear of the 1960s and 1970s peddled by the pro-US forces is replaced by the "yellow renminbi".

Occasionally sections of the big business press not so tightly connected with US imperialism spill the beans on what is the real situation regarding investment trends by overseas finance capital in Australia. One such occasion was 26 May 2016 when the Australian Financial Review printed an article headed "The Australian Myth of Massive Chinese Investment". The article revealed the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data on foreign investment in Australia over the last year.

Belgium invested $22.3 billion
China (excluding Hong Kong) invested $7.8 billion
China (including Hong Kong) invested $14.6 billion
USA invested $55.9 billion

The article said, "The accumulated stock of US direct investment in Australia is five times larger than that of China, while it also holds 16 times the value of equity securities and 123 times the value of debt securities. There was another standout observation in the ABS data. In 2015 Australians acquired Chinese assets worth $10.5 billion. Yes, that's correct, $2.7 billion more than the value of Australian assets acquired by the Chinese"!

So it is pretty clear that US imperialist investment in Australia is still number one, which matches its military and political influence and presence in the country. Perhaps the more sinister domination by US imperialism in Australia is the cultural influence with emphasis on individualism rather than the collective, whether it be in the workplace or communities. Even our Australian Rules football code businesses at the elite level look to the USA for new marketing tricks and how the game should be presented to maximize corporate dollars and corporate media monopoly interests.

This is not to say that all Chinese investment in Australia or foreign investment from other countries should be welcomed with open arms. Far from it. Independence for Australia should be the yard stick.