Nicholas Borst, Vice President and Director of China Research at Seafarer Capital Partners, delves into China's economic complexities in his upcoming book. He highlights the tension between state control and market forces shaping China's recent reforms under Xi Jinping. Discussions reveal how the government's increasing grip on the economy affects private innovation and economic trajectories. With a focus on the electric vehicle sector, Borst examines China's push for self-reliance, revealing the challenges domestic firms face amid rising global tensions.
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insights INSIGHT
China's Controlled Market Model
China's economic management aims to harness markets while keeping party control intact.
This blend explains many current contradictions and economic challenges China faces today.
insights INSIGHT
90s: Saving SOEs, Allowing Gaps
In the 90s, China aimed to save and strengthen key state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
Private sector growth filled gaps but was not meant to replace SOEs entirely.
insights INSIGHT
State Control Over Banks, Industries
Party documents and case studies show state control stayed strong despite surface reforms.
Control over banks and key industries was prioritized over full privatization.
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Nicholas Borst's 'The Bird in the Cage' examines the persistent tensions between state control and market forces in China's economic reforms since the late 1970s. The book analyzes how these tensions shape Xi Jinping's efforts to tighten control over the Chinese economy. It evaluates the broader implications of these policies for China's economic trajectory and its global trade relationships. By tracing the evolution of China's economic policies, the book uncovers the continuities that newcomers might overlook. It also gets into the contradictions of the current economy and how they affect specific companies.
The Chinese Communist Party’s complex and contradictory embrace of capitalism has played a pivotal role in shaping China’s economic reforms since the late 1970s. The Bird and the Cage: China's Economic Contradictions (Palgrave MacMillan, 2025) explores the persistent tensions between state control and market forces in China. It shows how these tensions provide a framework to understand Xi Jinping’s recent efforts to tighten control over the Chinese economy. It also evaluates the broader implications of these policies for China’s economic trajectory and its global trade relationships.
Nicholas Borst is vice president and director of China research at Seafarer Capital Partners, and a member of the seventh cohort of the Public Intellectuals Program of the National Committee on US-China Relations. Prior to joining Seafarer, he was a senior analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco covering financial and economic developments in Greater China. Previously, Mr. Borst was the China program manager and a research associate at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. He also worked as an analyst at the World Bank, reviewing Chinese overseas investment projects. He was the founder and editor of the Peterson Institute’s China Economic Watch blog, the co-founder of the Federal Reserve’s Pacific Exchanges blog and podcast, and the founder of Seafarer’s Prevailing Winds blog.
His research and commentary have been featured in the Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Bloomberg, The Wire China, and South China Morning Post. He has testified before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission on two occasions.
Mr. Borst holds a B.A. in political science and international studies from the University of Arizona. He holds a certificate in Chinese studies from The Johns Hopkins University – Nanjing University Center and a master’s degree in international relations and economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He is a CFA charterholder and a member of the CFA Institute.
New Books in Economic and Business History