ABSTRACT
Chinese firms have acquired enormous overseas interests since 2000. As relative latecomers to global markets, they often invest in territories subject to high political risk, which is often heightened by poorly regulated Chinese practices. This article describes these risks to China’s growing overseas economic interests and explores China’s response to them. First, the Chinese party-state is gradually softening its insistence on ‘non-interference’, intervening to secure Chinese economic interests overseas. Second, Chinese actors are seeking to cultivate greater consent among social forces in key states. This partial convergence with the practices of other major capitalist states has important implications for debates on China’s rise. These arguments are illustrated through a case study of Chinese engagement in Myanmar after 2011.
