What's there to elaborate. First version of Martinez study (when researcher was an assistant prof in public policy) has methodology criticized to death way back in 2017 by experts who specialize in satellite imagery, remote sensing etc. The same year NBER, National Bureau of Economic Research aka... one of the preeminent eco analysis think tanks US gov draws from had 3 credentialled staff economist ran a more sophisticated light study and alleged PRC (China) underreports economic activity.

Yet every year since 2017 the Martinez study gets play in mainstream media (MSM) because autocracy incompetent vs democracy plays well. In 2022 Martinez updated the study (I think also 2019, 2024 i.e. milked forever), with same methodology issue said insisted trend continues. Cycle repeats usually synced to some other retarded reporting to PRC economy going to explode (will also be milked forever).

In this case I'm assuming the chart making it's way around reddit and now socials on Shih/Elkobi study that inflate PRC subnational debt situation by conflating principle+interest (tldr bad methodology using non-standard metric to exaggerate debt risk), which like Martinez has been called out back in 2022 after publication. Customary in these discussions of unserious providence is bringing up the unserious Martinez study, which useful idiots continue to take seriously.