The Run of the Red Queen : Government, Innovation, Globalization, and Economic Growth in China

Few observers are unimpressed by the economic ambition of China or by the nation's remarkable rate of growth. But what does the future hold? This meticulously researched book closely examines the strengths and weaknesses of the Chinese economic system to discover where the nation may be headed and what the Chinese experience reveals about emerging market economies. The authors find that contrary to popular belief, cutting edge innovation is not a prerequisite for sustained economic vitality—and that China is a perfect case in point. Few observers are unimpressed by the economic ambition of China or by the nation s remarkable rate of growth. But what does the future hold? This meticulously researched book closely examines the strengths and weaknesses of the Chinese economic system to discover where the nation may be headed and what the Chinese experience reveals about emerging market economies. The authors find that contrary to popular belief, cutting edge innovation is not a prerequisite for sustained economic vitality and that China is a perfect case in point Contents 7 Acknowledgments 9 Abbreviations 13 Introduction. An Invention of My Own 19 Chapter 1. The White Knight Avoided: Economic Reforms and Innovation for Growth in China 28 Chapter 2. Rules of the Run: The Politics of China’s Institutions of Innovation 53 Chapter 3. Beijing 104 Chapter 4. Shanghai 144 Chapter 5. Shenzhen and the Pearl River Delta 178 Conclusion. The Meaning of the Run: China and the New Realities of Global Production 213 Notes 225 References 256 Index 283