Political Economy of China's Provinces: Competitive and Comparative Advantage

The Political Economy of China's Provinces is the first book to use the concept of competitive advantage in the context of Chinese provincial studies. On the basis of seven case studies, it charts different provincial paths of economic and political development, and analyzes how individual provinces use their comparative and competitive advantages to formulate strategies in inter-provincial competition. This is a radical new approach which contests the idea that it is safe to regard what happens in one province as representative for the whole country. It is a companion volume to China's Provinces in Reform, edited by David Goodman (Routledge, 1997), and makes available the most thorough data on contemporary Chinese provinces.