The political economy of state-owned enterprises in China and India

In: International political economy series

Abstract

China and India are drawing attention, both for their fast economic growth but also their idiosyncratic patterns of development. They have not followed the same development path as those which had industrialised in the 19th and first half of the 20th century; neither have they trotted along exactly the same route as those so-called 'Asian-tigers'. One stand-out feature of their development, however, is their state-owned enterprises or public sector, which continue to dominate strategic sectors. Often holding monopolistic or oligopolistic positions, they are among the largest employers in both countries and have their activities across vast geographical areas in most provinces as they expand into the global market. They are seen as the exemplars of the Chinese 'Red Capitalism', the 'capindialism' or Indian 'state-backed capitalism'. This book discusses ten SOEs in China and India, focusing on institutional, operational and sustainable questions in order to help us better understand the debate over the development paths and 'varieties of capitalism'.