For example, China's urbanization rate in 2022 was 64%, the same as Japan's back in the 1960s, she said, noting Japan's urbanization rate in the 1990s was a much higher 77%. China is also leading in innovation based on research and development spending as a percentage of sales, the report said. Easier said than done, especially since that debt and urban development are linked to a struggling real estate sector that's accounted for about a quarter of China's economy. After a summer of mounting worries about China's growth prospects, KKR's head of global macro, Henry McVey, made yet another trip to the region . He pointed to China's push to reduce carbon emissions and increase the integration of tech in the economy — such as through automation.

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Persons: Yao Yang, Yao, Bernstein, Rupal Agarwal, Bernstein's Agarwal, BYD — Bernstein, Meituan, Henry McVey, CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Tokyo, CNBC, National School of Development, Peking University, KKR, Citi Locations: China, Japan, Asia, Hong Kong