五大经济领域：
美国风光依旧，中国正迎头急追

美国经济的光明面

    如今，美国经济可谓一片惨淡：失业率高企；投资者对欧美大量债务及赤字可能造成的负面影响忧心忡忡；2007年，美国房地产价格崩盘后，美国住宅市场始终萎靡不振，鲜有改善迹象。我们已经对政界失去了信心。人们不禁想问：“美国是否已经丧失了竞争优势？”

    与此同时，新兴经济体正在迅速追赶。中国已经成为仅次于美国的全球第二大经济体，预计今后10年，中国将实现年均9%的经济增速；而今年上半年美国经济增长几乎停滞，如果运气好的话，或许今年能超过2%。

    尽管目前美国经济一片愁云惨雾，而巴西、俄罗斯和其他新兴经济体正在迎头赶上，美国依然是全球各地的投资者和企业寻求机遇的地方。近期，美国银行（Bank of America）旗下的私人财富管理公司U.S. Trust在其报告中向客户阐述了“美国经济的优势所在”。

    《财富》杂志（Fortune）挑选了其中的五个优势，并列出了相关的分析和质疑。

经济规模最大、效率最高

    如今，与大多数美国人相比，中国人或许买走了更多的普拉达手袋，但美国依然是世界上规模最大、效率最高的经济体。

    大约在去年的这个时候，中国超越日本成为全球第二大经济体。尽管许多分析师称，到2027年，这个东亚巨人将最终超越美国，但目前大多数美国人仍然比中国人有钱得多。世界银行（the World Bank）的数据显示，2010年，中国人均GDP为4,393美元，而美国则富裕得多，达到47,184美元。

    此外，美国还是世界上效率最高的经济体，其GDP（14.6万亿美元）是排在其后的三大经济体——中国、日本和德国——的总和。诚然，据美国劳工统计局（the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics）的资料，就人均产出来看，美国工人的效率全球最高，但就每小时产出来看，挪威在2010年比美国高出25%。

外国投资最多

    中国和德国或许出口了更多的产品和服务，但美国依然是外国投资者眼中的香饽饽。总统经济顾问委员会（President's Council of Economic Advisers）2011年6月发表的报告称，2009年外国企业在美投资高达3.1万亿美元，是法国和英国的三倍，是中国的六倍多。

    但同时也必须承认，其他国家尤其是中国正在不断追赶。虽然美国依靠其开放的经济和极低的投资门槛吸引了大量外国投资者，但由于发达国家的失业率和政府债务攀升，侵蚀了投资者信心，企业正涌向中国这个东亚巨人，谋求销售增长。

    2009年，中国取代美国成为全球最大的汽车市场。从起亚（Kia Motors）到大众（VW）的汽车厂商纷纷向中国投资了数十亿美元。比如，在今年8月份，总部位于德国沃尔夫斯堡的大众公司中国开办了首个发动机再制造工厂。该公司称，计划到2015年通过其多家汽车制造厂向中国投资146亿美元。

America's upside

    It's clear that all is not well in the U.S. marketplace: Unemployment is high. Investors worry about the implications of enormous debts and deficits at home and across Europe. The U.S. housing market has been a mess since the collapse of home prices in 2007 and is showing few signs of improvement. We've lost faith in our politicians. It's hard not to wonder if the U.S. has lost its competitive edge.

    Emerging economies are catching up rapidly. China, the world's second-largest economy next to the U.S., expects an average of 9% growth a year for the next decade. The U.S., whose economy barely grew during the first half of this year, will be lucky to see much more than 2% growth this year.

    But amid the doom and gloom, the U.S. is still the place most investors and businesses around the world turn to for opportunity -- even though Brazil, Russia and other emerging economies are increasingly catching up. Analysts at U.S. Trust, the private wealth management division of Bank of America, recently reminded clients in a note about "What's right with America."

    Fortune highlights five of those points, along with a dose of analysis and -- ahem -- skepticism.

Biggest and most productive economy

    The Chinese may buy more Prada handbags these days than most Americans, but the U.S. is still the world's biggest and most productive economy in the world.

    Around this time last year, China passed Japan to become the world's second-largest economy. But while many analysts say the East Asian giant could eventually surpass the U.S. by 2027, most Americans are still far richer than most Chinese. China's GDP per capita was $4,393 in 2010, while the U.S. is much wealthier at $47,184 per capita, according to the World Bank.

    The U.S. is also the most productive economy in the world, with just as much output in a year ($14.6 trillion) as the next three biggest economies -- Japan, China and Germany. Admittedly, while American workers are the world's most productive on an output per person basis, Norway in 2010 produced 25% more per hour (the best measure of productivity) than the U.S., according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Tops in foreign investment

    China and Germany may sell many more goods and services abroad, but the U.S. remains the world's hot spot for foreigners investors. In 2009, foreign companies invested $3.1 trillion in the U.S. -- triple that of France and the United Kingdom and more than six times that of China, according to a June 2011 report by the President's Council of Economic Advisers.

    Admittedly, other countries, China in particular, have been steadily catching up. While the U.S. has lured foreign investors with its open economy and very low barriers to investments, businesses are turning to the East Asian giant to bolster sales as rising unemployment and government indebtedness erode confidence in developed nations.

    In 2009, China overtook the U.S. to become the world's biggest auto market and companies from Kia Motors to VW have been investing billions into the country. For instance, Wolfsburg, Germany-based VW opened its first engine reprocessing plant in China in August and said it plans to invest $14.6 billion through its auto manufacturing ventures in the country by 2015.