China and Japan have ended up on very similar economic trajectories, since both countries emerged from relative obscurity to become major powerhouses through aggressive reforms and investments. In the process, the nations each have accumulated huge amounts of debt and asset bubbles. In the 1990s, the situation became unsustainable in Japan and the nation  entered a period known as the “lost 30 years” characterised by economic stagnation, weak consumer demand and lower birth rate. China, after…