the scale at China can do things is different from japanese as a function of its population. 10% of japanese population investing abroad in an under connected world in the 80s is vastly different to 10% of Chinese buying up real estate in an connected world with access to lots of resources and information Japanese in the 80s simply didn't have.

Chinese also immigrate into other countries in vastly higher numbers than Japanese.

The japan, china comparison is close to false equivalence