
Books
Why China worries more about bytes than barrels
Armchair strategists like to pontificate about China’s “Malacca Dilemma”, says Chris Miller in his book Chip War. In a crisis, the theory goes, China might not be able to get vital oil through the Strait of Malacca, the main shipping channel between the Pacific and Indian oceans. “Beijing, however, is more worried about a blockade measured in bytes rather than barrels.” It spends more money each year importing computer chips than it does on oil.