Why China’s Economy Keeps Hitting the Same Dead End Under the CCP—No Matter Who’s in Power

Under the Chinese Communist Party, ‘a planned economy can’t keep up with the needs of a modern market,’ one expert said.

A police officer patrols with his gun on Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Nov. 8, 2013. Feng Li/Getty Images

News Analysis

China’s Fourth Plenum recently wrapped up with a familiar pledge: The next five-year plan will deliver “high-quality development” and “technological self-reliance” under even tighter Chinese Communist Party (CCP) control. Officials were told to brave “high winds, choppy waves, and even dangerous storms.”