This paper presents a case study of two large firms which emerged from among the ranks of traditional state-owned enterprises and new entrants: Shougang (steel) and Sanjiu (pharmaceuticals). Rather than being irreconcilable with the market economy, the experience of these two firms suggests that...

In China's industrial reform, alongside the much-studied dynamism of small industries, there has been a simultaneous powerful growth of large-scale state industry. State planning has played an important role in this process, through heavy protection from international competition and support for...

As China joins the World Trade Organisation, the author questions whether China's large firms will be able to compete on the global level playing field. Over the past two decades, Chinese large enterprises have undertaken extensive evolutionary change (comparable to that of other latecomer...