The History of China's Industrial Policy

State-owned enterprises play a much larger role in the Chinese economy than they do in most Western economies. China's economic system subsidize firms in a lot of ways, some of which are very different from how things are done in the United States and more market-oriented economies. The Chinese government can try and make market access for foreign companies contingent on providing sensitive technology to indigenous Chinese enterprises on favorable terms. It was definitely towards the market in those early decades of reform.