Geopolitics drives Xi's economic agenda

China's economic statecraft is in service of its geopolitical ambitions

The Chinese Communist Party (CPC) has a very poor opinion of capitalists, both the home-grown variety and the foreign kind. They should certainly contribute to China’s development and making it rich, but they are, at the end of the day, mere instruments in advancing China’s geopolitical ambitions. As Chinese President Xi Jinping has demonstrated, wiping out over $1 trillion from the market value of China’s most successful technology platforms—Alibaba, Weibo and Didi Chuxing— is considered small change in the pursuit of the CPC’s political objectives. These include demolishing any potential centres of power and influence outside the Party and asserting