Open QuestionsJustin Lin Yifu on China’s third plenum, overcapacity and avoiding Japan’s fate

Justin Lin Yifu is a professor of economics at Peking University and former chief economist at the World Bank. His theory of “new structural economics” – which advises governments of developing countries to take an active role in building and optimising their industrial base – is widely believed to have influenced Beijing’s economic policies over the past decade, and he has predicted China will “surpass the US, as measured by market exchange rate, around 2030” and surmount the middle-income trap “within two or three years”. He was a counsellor for China’s State Council from 2013 to 2023.

Having already been designated as playing a “decisive role” in resource allocation, it is difficult to find words that can emphasise the role of the market even more.