In recent decades China has built over 1,400 large industrial parks, a massive investment accounting for over 40 percent of the country’s manufacturing jobs. However, some of these projects are more successful than others. Now, a study co-authored by an MIT professor suggests that some industrial parks appear to have been developed due to networks of political ties — and those parks distinctly underperform their counterparts. The finding adds nuance and detail to the big-picture story of China’s explosive economic growth over the last thirty-plus years. The research outlines the…
