The year of 1.3 billion rabbits

Spring Festival, celebrated by Chinese people all over the world four to six weeks after the Gregorian New Year, distinguishes itself by celebrating not only a new calendar cycle but also the fecundity and life heralded by the start of spring. This epitome of Chinese culture, which celebrates family and abundance, offers the perfect opportunity to reflect on China's progress in the previous year and forecast its coming year.

For a European like myself, the animals associated with the Chinese lunar calendar are not only fun, but provide surprisingly suitable analogies for China's development during the last several years. For me, the just ended Year of the Tiger was a fitting symbol of China's roaring economic progress. Similarly, the Year of the Rabbit adds another dimension to my analysis of China's growth.

I have learned that according to the Chinese zodiac, the rabbit embodies a wide range of personality traits. It is gracious, kind, sensitive, elegant, reserved, tender and lucky, though it can also be moody, detached, opportunistic, and stubborn.