Guizhou has 50 world's tallest bridges
China's fourth poorest province, Guizhou, contains 50 of the world's tallest bridges — a symbol of prestige-driven malinvestment.
Snapshot · Planet Money
Building things and breaking things in China (Summer School World Tour)
Explore episode
Jul 15, 2026
Where this was said
The Go-Go Years: Desmond Shum and China's Real Estate Boom
At 6:29 · chapter starts 5:51
After Dan Wang introduces the image of Guizhou's 50 world-record bridges as the physical symbol of China's engineering-state excess [1] — Dan Wang "Guizhou, China's fourth-poorest province, has 50 of the world's tallest bridges and roughly 13 airports — some with only a few flights per …" 06:22 , the episode shifts to a 2023 Planet Money excerpt hosted by Nick Fountain and Emily Feng. They interview Desmond Shum, a property developer who built his fortune through a Beijing airport logistics hub — the first of its kind — developed alongside his then-wife Whitney, who had political connections to the premier's family. Shum's account is a vivid anthropological document: $10,000–$20,000 watches handed out as 'tributes of respect,' a thousand-dollar bowl of fish air-bladder soup, and a customs chief who agreed to sign off on the project in exchange for basketball courts, a theater, a banquet hall, and a karaoke bar — adding $50 million to costs. The profit on the deal was still close to $200 million. The moral hazard of the era, Shum explains, was structural: when every deal is this lucrative, bribery stops feeling like corruption and starts feeling like the cost of doing business.
50 World-Record Bridges in China's Poorest Province
Guizhou, China's fourth-poorest province, has 50 of the world's tallest bridges and roughly 13 airports — some with only a few flights per week. It's a monument to prestige projects over people's actual needs.
Guizhou has ~13 airports
Guizhou province, one of China's poorest, has approximately 13 airports, some of which have only a couple of flights per week.
Bribes, Private Jets, and the Peak of China's Boom
Three private jets flew to France — two of them empty — so real estate moguls could play cards. Meanwhile $10,000 watches were handed out as 'tributes of respect.' This was the apex of China's real estate era, and it was hiding a catastrophic crash.
Customs chief demanded $50M in amenities
The customs chief overseeing Desmond Shum's Beijing airport logistics hub demanded basketball courts, a theater, a banquet hall, and a karaoke bar — adding $50 million to the project cost.
Logistics hub sold for ~$200M profit
After paying $50 million in demanded amenities, Desmond Shum and his wife still sold the Beijing airport logistics hub for close to $200 million in profit.
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