>>106335578
This checks out pretty well. The bigger issue other than population size differences (chink 900mil-1.4bil estimate) is likely how PhD programs are conducted in each country. If you or your advisor cannot find something for your PhD then that slot has no reason to exist. If they cannot get funding to add those slots and pay the students who obtain such PhDs then these slots will not be filled. Industry compared to academia can only add so many extra slots and likely they would rather take someone who has a PhD and finished a post doc then prop up one of their own for 5 years of schooling that might not pay off even if it results in a new product down the line.
If PhD's paid 60k yr alot more people would be doing it but often then not its 25-40k range per student per year and even less.