ABSTRACT
It is hard to know exactly when the concept of “industrial policy” entered China. We can say with some certainty, however, that it had become an officially used term by the late 1980s. At that time, a report from an investigation trip made to Japan got the attention of senior leaders, who affirmed its conclusions. From that time on, “industrial policy” was something to “formulate” and to “implement” and became part of the daily work of macroeconomic departments.
