China’s Discourse and Policies Towards the Private Sector Under Xi Jinping: A Continuity or Change?

This article examines whether China’s official discourse and policies towards the private sector under Xi Jinping are a significant departure from Xi’s predecessors or a tactical adjustment. The article highlights that though the academic debates on the Communist Party of China’s (CPC) policies towards the private sector received great attention, the evolving causes behind changing policies remain underexamined. This article adopts a comparative approach and underscores the policies and discourses shaping private sector development under Xi Jinping and his predecessors. It then highlights how a transformed approach is linked to the evolving nature of the CPC’s official discourse. The article finally examines how Xi Jinping’s policies towards the private sector are a renewed strategy towards China’s private sector development. In its analysis, the article lays special focus on China’s 2020 tech crackdown and argues that China’s experimentation with its technology enterprises is a part and parcel of a broader and evolving approach towards governing the private sector.