If you are in the least bit interested in what happens inside China, especially from a political, economic, human rights or other angle, then a post by Professor Patrick Chovanec is vital reading.

Professor Chovanec is Associate Professor of Economics at Beijing’s Tsinghua University. He also recently spoke at AZ China’s TMS conference.

Patrick’s piece, on his own blog site, epitomises the adage that politics trumps economics. Unless you have an excellent understanding of how the political system works (in any country), you will not be able to grasp how economic policy is developed, rolled out or executed. In China, it is difficult enough to get any sort of clear picture of how the Party controls things. Patrick’s piece gives a concise view of the process of selecting leaders, the balance of power between the Party, the State and the Army, and how the whole structure hangs together.

It’s a long article, but well worth reading. Click here to access it.