When did China cease to be a mysterious land and become something that affects us all? James Kynge dates the transition to early 2004, when iron manhole covers suddenly vanished from roads and pavements around the world. Chicago lost more than 150 in a month as thieves tried to satisfy China's thirst for scrap-metal; Scotland saw over 100 disappear in what was called the "great drain robbery". "In Montreal, Gloucester and Kuala Lumpur," writes Mr Kynge, "unsuspecting pedestrians stumbled into holes."
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