"China's drowning the world in cheap goods!" scream the headlines in some western media. Sounds like someone's been binge-watching too many disaster movies. Let's peek behind the doomsday curtain and see if this "excess capacity" monster is more smoke than fire.

US officials such as U.S. Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen seem to think China's industrial capacity is like a bathtub with a busted faucet, flooding the world with cheap EVs and solar panels. Yellen called out China's industrial overcapacity, particularly in the green energy industries, calling it unfair competition that "distorts global prices" and "hurts American firms and workers, as well as firms and workers around the world."

But hold your horses. Before building an economic doomsday ark, let's check the level of water. The most common way of measuring overcapacity is capacity utilization. Yes, it dipped below the 76 percent mark for a couple of years, but it's been steadily climbing back up. Research by Guolian Securities indicates that China's capacity utilization rate in the fourth quarter of last year was 75.2 percent, significantly higher than the same period in 2015. Based on the data, Fan Lei, an economist at Guolian Securities, argued against the notion of serious structural overcapacity in China. So, maybe it's not a busted faucet, but more like a natural ebb and flow of the economic tides, something we can navigate with confidence.

Yellen's particularly worried about China's "new big three"—EVs, batteries, and solar panels – decimating US and global industries. But here's the twist: they only make up 4.5 percent, a tiny fraction of China's total exports. It's like worrying that a drizzle will cause a tsunami. And let's not forget, those Chinese EVs are selling for a premium overseas, not bargain-basement prices. According to a Bloomberg report, "Chinese companies aren't dumping electric vehicles on global markets at a lower cost either. Leading Chinese EVs fetch roughly double on average in Europe than domestically." It looks like China's playing fair and winning over customers with quality, not undercutting. Not to mention the boost they're giving the global green transition.

Now, time for a pop quiz! What's the opposite of trade? If you answered "everyone just making their own stuff," congratulations, you passed! But seriously, trade is about give and take, not one country playing economic whack-a-mole with another. As one wise economist said, without trade, we'd be living in a world without lattes, VR headsets, or those ridiculously expensive handbags everyone goes crazy for. Kidding aside, Nicholas Lardy, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute, expressed his skepticism about the concept of overcapacity at a financial forum in Hong Kong. He remarked, "If you think about it, it means every country should only produce what it consumed itself. That means no trade. Where would we be if there was no trade?"

Instead of pointing fingers, maybe the US should take notes. Invest in green tech, unleash its inner innovator, and build a sustainable future. Oh, and crack open an economics textbook while you're at it. Otherwise, the only thing getting "decimated" will be America's economic leadership and its understanding of basic economic principles.

So, next time someone cries wolf about China's "excess capacity," remember: it might just be a case of economic FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). Look, folks, a rising tide lifts all boats. Instead of fearing China's economic growth, let's see it as an opportunity to innovate, collaborate, and build a better future for everyone. So, let's ditch the fear-mongering and embrace the potential for a more prosperous and sustainable world, powered by healthy competition and global cooperation.