International Journal of the Economics of Business

Enhancing State-Owned Capital: Governance, Ownership, and Strategic Restructuring in China’s State-Owned Enterprises

Aims and Scope

State-owned capital and state-owned enterprises (SOEs) play a central role in China’s economic system and its distinctive model of state capitalism. They dominate strategic sectors, implement national industrial policies, and serve dual objectives of commercial efficiency and socio-political mandates. As China continues to deepen its market-oriented reforms, SOEs are undergoing significant transformations in governance structures, ownership arrangements, and organizational forms. These changes offer a unique lens through which to examine institutional adaptation, state–market interactions, and the mechanisms of economic transition in a major global economy.

This Special Issue aims to provide a focused and contemporary examination of the evolution of SOEs in China, enhancing scholarly understanding of their reform trajectories and economic roles. We invite submissions that offer rigorous theoretical and empirical insights, particularly addressing the following interconnected themes:

Governance and Objectives: How do SOEs balance profit maximization with state policy objectives? What governance structures emerge from this duality, and how do they affect decision-making, innovation, and performance? (e.g., Bai et al., 2006).

Mixed-Ownership Reforms: What are the drivers and consequences of introducing private capital into SOEs? How do alternative reform models, such as equity diversification and strategic partnerships, reshape corporate governance, efficiency, and competitiveness? (e.g., Megginson & Netter, 2001; Huang et al., 2017).

Strategic Restructuring and M&A: How do mergers, acquisitions, and industrial consolidation among SOEs alter market dynamics and resource allocation? What role do these activities play in enhancing national competitiveness and fostering emerging industries? (e.g., Estrin et al., 2009; Liang et al., 2015).

Research on these themes is vital not only for scholars of China's political economy but also for comparative institutional analysis more broadly, offering insights into state-market relations and enterprise reform across different economic systems.

Background and Motivation

China's economic transformation over the past several decades has been marked by the coexistence and co-evolution of a vibrant private sector and a reformed, yet strategically pivotal, state-owned sector (Naughton, 2018). SOEs remain central to China's industrial strategy, infrastructure development, and responses to global economic competition. Their reform, encompassing governance modernization, ownership diversification, and strategic reorganization, constitutes a continuous and high-stakes policy experiment.

Understanding this reform process is essential for several reasons. First, it sheds light on the micro-foundations of state capacity and effectiveness of industrial policy in a large, complex economy (Amsden, 2001). Second, it addresses directly core questions in corporate finance and economics regarding the impact of state ownership on firm behavior, resource allocation, and economic growth (Shleifer & Vishny, 1994). Finally, the Chinese experience provides a unique comparative reference for other economies navigating the roles of state enterprises in development (Lazzarini and Musacchio, 2018). Despite significant scholarly attention, important questions remain unresolved. Whether mixed-ownership reforms consistently translate into performance improvements remains debated. The governance challenges arising from the state's dual role as owner and regulator are not yet fully understood. Moreover, the systemic and competitive implications of large-scale SOE restructuring for domestic and international markets warrant further investigation.

Topics of Interest

We welcome submissions that address, but are not limited to, the following questions:

1. How do governance mechanisms in SOEs mediate between political mandates and market discipline? What are the implications for firm performance and innovation?
2. What factors shape the path and pace of mixed-ownership reform? How do different forms of private capital participation affect SOE behavior and outcomes?
3. What are the strategic rationales and economic consequences of SOE-led mergers, acquisitions, and industry consolidation?
4. How do SOE reforms contribute to, or complicate, objectives such as financial stability, technological self-reliance, and regional development?
5. How does the evolution of Chinese SOEs interact with global capital markets, supply chains, and international regulatory environments?

We encourage a broad range of methodological approaches, including theoretical modeling, econometric analysis, and in-depth case studies.