The US Shouldn’t Repeat China’s Economic Mistakes
Industrial policy never made much sense for America, and now it’s not even working for China.
Picking winners and losers.
Photographer: Nic Antaya/Bloomberg
When President Joe Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act a year ago, he did not talk just about how it would revive the US’s manufacturing base and enhance its national security, he also emphasized how it would help America compete with China. Back then the Chinese economy still looked unstoppable, and it was widely credited to a heavy government hand that moved labor, favored some industries and shut down others, and spent big on real estate.
Now the Chinese economy is slowing down, raising doubts about the industrial policy that helped create it — and that Biden seeks to emulate for the US.