In the business world, what are the pros and cons of a big country (like China) having only one time zone?

Question

In the business world, what are the pros and cons of a big country (like China) having only one time zone?

Answer 1

In theory, it is supposed to be unnecessary to calculate time differences in your head.  When you look at the clock and it's 10 a.m. in Peking, it's supposed to be 10 a.m. in western China.  

The only trouble is, it's actually 7:30 a.m. by the sun in western China, and people haven't really gone to work yet.  So, if you telephone the office in western China, no one is in yet.

Meanwhile, supper hour TV shows come on at 6 p.m. according to the clocks in western China.  Only trouble is, it's still mid-afternoon and people are still at work, so no one gets to see them except those who are home all day.

In other words, it's more complicated than what it's intended to replace.  

The real reason for the single time zone has nothing to do with business or efficiency.  It's Communist politics that drives the system.  Before the Mao Tse-tung regime took power, China had real time zones like every other large country.