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A Network Anatomy of Chinese State-Owned Enterprises

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 October 2017

LI-WEN LIN
LI-WEN LIN*
Affiliation:
University of British Columbia Peter A. Allard School of Law
*
*Email: [email protected].
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Abstract

This Article provides an anatomy of Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) by unpacking their various relations with different types of state organs. It shows that Chinese SOEs are embedded in a network composed of dense and complex links with the state. Shareholding ties, albeit important, are only one of the many relations with the state. This network perspective provides a rather comprehensive overview of the basic architecture of China's state-owned sector. It illustrates important governance institutions that are unobservable from the laws on the book and distinctive from international standards. It clarifies some SOE behaviors that appear puzzling when taking the individual firm as the unit of analysis. It also raises challenging questions on various areas of law in the context of globalization.

Type
Review Article
Information
World Trade Review , Volume 16 , Issue 4: Symposium on State-Owned Enterprises in China , October 2017 , pp. 583 - 600
Copyright
Copyright © Li-Wen Lin 2017 

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Footnotes

Portions of this article draw upon Lin and Milhaupt (2013) and Lin (2013), with modifications and information updates.

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