Japanese academic Kai Kajitani doubts that the Chinese government's emphasis on common prosperity last year had the aim of implementing radical redistributive policies. Instead, he sees it as a “vaccine”, in the sense of a precautionary measure against widening disparities caused by the essentially neoliberal growth-focused strategy that Beijing is consistently advancing.

Japanese academic Kai Kajitani says that given China's past efforts to clamp down on individuals and entities that "stick out too much", its current clampdown on internet platform companies is not surprising. Such moves are also expected as the Chinese government seeks to win popular support and stabilise society ahead of the 20th Party Congress in 2022.

Japanese academic Kai Kajitani notes that Chinese industrial policy has been attracting much attention these days, especially after recent moves to prevent monopolistic practices by major companies such as Alibaba. China has also been criticised by many for its practice of giving industrial subsidies. However, it is worth taking a closer look and examining these policies from the standpoint of current trends in economics, as like everyone else, China is experimenting with new possibilities.

Japanese academic Kai Kajitani examines the enormous impact that the coronavirus is having on the Chinese economy. Measures are in place to absorb the shocks — but unlike many countries, the country has so far gone with other routes apart from direct cash payouts. Will these efforts be enough? And are the voices of the underclass in society being heard?