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This article uses theories of industrial policy to analyse the growth of China's telecommunications equipment industry over the past 20 years. It highlights the role of the Chinese government in shaping the sector, by first utilizing imported equipment, then promoting Sino-foreign joint ventures and finally fostering domestic companies. Significantly, the government encouraged market competition, and avoided the pitfall of monopoly state control. Today, key telecommunications players include joint ventures, state-owned companies and even a major Chinese private corporation. The article concludes that the government's fiscal and regulatory industrial polices were successful, in that they rapidly built a modern communications network while promoting a vibrant free-market competitive environment.

China's overall telecommunications development during the past 20 years has been remarkable, and in 2004 the nation ranks first in the world in numbers of both mobile and fixed-line telephones, and second in the number of internet users. However, the recent growth has left the country's vast population with an internal communications and digital divide among “haves” and “have nots,” with citizen access mainly separated along economic and regional lines. This article assesses the growth of the communications divide, reasons for its occurrence, and ways political, economic and technological forces are shaping the spread of China's telecommunications tools.

Many areas of China's economy stand to see change from WTO accession, from agriculture to insurance and banking to telecommunications. Among the sectors affected, the automobile industry, as an old-line heavy industry, seems one of the most open to a global challenge. Since its reorganization in the post-Mao Zedong reform era, China's auto industry has been nurtured in a protectionist environment. Joint venture companies have satisfied domestic passenger car vehicle needs, but price and quality problems have left the industry open to some challenge in a free market post-WTO world. This article assesses the ways China has built a significant yet vulnerable vehicle production system. It then examines various provisions of the WTO and their potential effect on the country's auto industry. It concludes with a discussion of possible future developmental paths in the vehicle sector under the new international trade rules. Post-Mao Growth of the Auto Sector and Protectionist Measures 3. Harwit, China's Automobile Industry, p. 29. 4. Wholly-foreign owned enterprises, ones meant to export vehicles, however, were allowed, and the Panda Motor Corporation was approved at local and national levels. The rise and fall of that venture are outlined in Harwit, China's Automobile Industry, ch. 7. 5. At 60% local content, the import duty fell to 24%, and 80% local content meant only a 16% import tax. From summer 2000 interview in Shanghai. 6. Zhongguo qiche gongye nianjian (China Automotive Industry Yearbook)