Chinese Antitrust Exceptionalism

Angela Zhang's new book, Chinese Antitrust Exceptionalism, fills a big gap in understanding the mystery of China, the most dramatically emerging economy and one with the apparent goal to become the global economic superpower, and antitrust, a discipline adopted by China, which notionally limits power and facilitates open, efficient markets. Professor Zhang reveals China's nuanced intertwining of politics, institutions, and law. She uncovers the bureaucratic environment and the incentives of the bureaucrats and the law enforcers. She tells the story, not apparent to the outsider, of how decisions are really made. The book is a necessary addition to any library about China as an emerging global power, politics, and the limits of law. * Eleanor Fox, Walter J. Derenberg Professor of Trade Regulation, New York University School of Law * As Chinese technology firms have become global players, they have come under increasing scrutiny by Western policy makers. As Angela Zhang demonstrates, antitrust law has become an instrument not only of economics but also of strategic rivalry. Informed by legal analysis, game theory, and deep knowledge of both Chinese and Western legal practices, this valuable book provides a guide both to present-day controversies and to a more hopeful way forward. * Dani Rodrik, Ford Foundation Professor of International Political Economy, John F. Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University, Author of The Globalization Paradox * This is an excellent book on a hugely important issue. Professor Zhang situates her sharp legal analysis in the broader contexts of Chinese economy and politics. An indispensable and timely treatment of the topic. As tensions are rising between China and the rest of the global community, this book provides a way and an angle for us to make sense of these developments. I recommend the book highly to anyone who has an interest in Chinese political economy. * Yasheng Huang, Epoch Foundation Professor of International Management, MIT Sloan School of Management, Author of Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics * Angela Zhang offers a deeply insightful and thought-provoking account of China's antitrust policy today. Showing how law, economics, and politics interact, Zhang reveals the peculiar place that China occupies in the world of antitrust today-both as a controversial regulator and as an elusive target for foreign antitrust regulators. The book is astute, engaging, and highly compelling. It is a timely contribution that is a must-read for anyone interested in antitrust law or China's role in the global economy. * Anu Bradford, Henry L. Moses Professor of Law and International Organization, Columbia University, Author of The Brussels Effect * Are U.S. and EU analysts getting Chinese antitrust wrong - and so misunderstanding a key element of the struggle over China's participation in the global legal order? Angela Zhang's terrific book takes you on a deep dive into Chinese institutions to show how antitrust enforcement there is a bottom-up bureaucratic process, not a top-down command and control structure. From this research comes a policy approach for the West to adopt, based on incentives and threats, that has a chance of working. Required reading for anyone interested in China-West relations through the lens of law and real-world politics. * Noah Feldman, Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and author of The Arab Winter *