US-China Truce Extended - Xi's Thought for Party Schools - Justin Yifu Lin on Why Xi's Economic Thought Surpasses Western Economic Theories
Let’s begin with the US-China joint statement on trade issues. The statement basically extended the 90-day tariff truce. It says:
“The Parties recall the commitments under the Geneva Joint Statement and agree to take the following actions by August 12, 2025:
“1. The United States will continue to modify the application of the additional ad valorem rate of duty on articles of China (including articles of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Macao Special Administrative Region) set forth in Executive Order 14257 of April 2, 2025, by suspending 24 percentage points of that rate for an additional period of 90 days, starting on August 12, 2025, while retaining the remaining ad valorem rate of 10 percent on those articles pursuant to the terms of said Order.
2. China will continue to (1) modify the application of the additional ad valorem rate of duty on articles of the United States set forth in the Announcement of the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council No. 4 of 2025, by suspending 24 percentage points of that rate for an additional period of 90 days, starting on August 12, 2025, while retaining the remaining additional ad valorem rate of 10 percent on those articles, and (2) adopt or maintain all necessary administrative measures to suspend or remove the non-tariff countermeasures taken against the United States as agreed in the Geneva Joint Statement.
This Joint Statement is based on the discussions that took place during the China-U.S. Economic and Trade Meeting in Stockholm, which was held under the mechanism established by the Geneva Joint Statement. The representative from the Chinese side for this meeting was He Lifeng, Vice Premier of the State Council, and the representatives from the U.S. side were Scott Bessent, Secretary of Treasury, and Jamieson Greer, United States Trade Representative.”
President Trump signed an executive order on Monday extending a trade truce between the United States and China for another three months, providing a reprieve from the threat of escalating tariffs and export controls that have rocked the global economy. The extension, until Nov. 10, provides the two countries more time to work out their differences and set the stage for a potential summit between Mr. Trump and President Xi Jinping, China’s leader, later this year. Mr. Trump suggested on Monday that negotiations were making progress. ‘They’ve been dealing quite nicely — the relationship is very good with President Xi and myself,’ Mr. Trump said at the White House. Top economic officials had been working to finalize a provisional agreement to extend the truce that was reached during meetings in Sweden last month. The deadline for the truce to expire was Tuesday. After the Sweden talks, American officials were optimistic that the president would sign off on the arrangement, though in dramatic fashion, Mr. Trump waited until the final hours before the deadline to extend the pause. Had the tariffs snapped back in place, they risked escalating a trade war between the world’s two largest economies that rattled global markets earlier this year. With the clock ticking, Mr. Trump on Sunday night called on China to quadruple its purchases of American soybeans and noted that doing so would help reduce America’s trade deficit with China. ‘China is worried about its shortage of soybeans’, Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social in a message directed to Xi Jinping, China’s leader. ‘Our great farmers produce the most robust soybeans’.”
Of course, there have been some really interesting developments in the interim. For instance, NYT reports:
“Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices are expected to pay the United States 15 percent of the money they take in from selling artificial intelligence chips to China, as part of a highly unusual financial agreement with the Trump administration. The deal, which was described by three people familiar with the agreement who spoke anonymously because they didn’t have permission to discuss it publicly, comes a month after Nvidia received permission to sell a version of its artificial intelligence chips to China. While the Trump administration publicly said a month ago that it was giving the green light to Nvidia to sell an A.I. chip called H20 to China, it did not actually issue the licenses making those sales possible. On Wednesday, Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s chief executive, met with President Trump at the White House and agreed to give the federal government its 15 percent cut, essentially making the federal government a partner in Nvidia’s business in China, said the people familiar with the deal. The Commerce Department began granting licenses for A.I. chip sales two days later, these people said. Though Mr. Huang has led negotiations with the White House, Nvidia isn’t the only company that sells A.I. chips to China. AMD has an A.I. chip called the MI308 and in April the Trump administration also banned sales of it to the Chinese. There are few precedents for the Commerce Department agreeing to grant licenses for exports in exchange for a share of revenue. But the unorthodox payments are consistent with Mr. Trump’s increasingly interventionist role in international business deals involving American companies.”
Meanwhile, there’s clearly concern in China about backdoors in chips. CNBC reports:
“Nvidia’s chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China’s state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. ‘When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it,’ the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China’s cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the U.S. chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks — a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no ‘backdoors’ that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including ‘remote shutdown’ through a hardware ‘backdoor’.”
There was a report in WSJ earlier this week, which claimed that ILD chief Liu Jianchao had been taken away “for questioning”. The report says:
“Liu was taken away after returning to Beijing from a work trip overseas in late July, according to the people familiar with the matter. The reason for his detention couldn’t be determined. Liu, 61 years old, couldn’t be reached for comment. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the International Department and the party’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, its top internal watchdog, didn’t respond to questions sent directly or through the Chinese government’s information office. Liu’s most recent public engagements were visits to Singapore, South Africa and Algeria late last month in his capacity as head of the International Department, according to official disclosures. The department continued to list Liu as its minister on its website as of Monday in Beijing.”
It adds: “People who have met Liu say he once professed a passion for golf and used to play often, but likely stopped as the party started frowning upon officials golfing amid Xi’s clampdown on extravagant behavior. Liu’s son was working in the finance industry in the U.S. at one point and is now based in China, according to some of these people.”
Now, let’s turn to today’s paper.
Here are the key reports and articles that I found noteworthy from the People’s Daily’s edition on Tuesday, August 12, 2025.
Page 1: The full revised version of regulations on the work of Party schools (academies of governance) has been published in the paper. This is a really long document that starts on the front page and then occupies all of Page 4. On Page 2, there’s a Q&A report, which highlights the revisions. The key takeaway from this is that the regulations essentially embed Xi’s thought and the concept of Chinese-style modernisation into the training of cadres and officials at different levels. For example, see this:
“In terms of training content, the Regulations highlight the primary and core disciplines of Party theoretical education and Party spirit education, strengthen training in job performance, and emphasise focusing on using the latest achievements of the sinicization and modernisation of Marxism to unify thinking, will, and action, and persistently using Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to gather hearts and forge souls”.
Anyway, the report says:
“The newly-revised Regulations fully implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, deeply implement the spirit of the 20th Party Congress and the Second and Third Plenary Sessions of the 20th Central Committee, conscientiously implement and carry out the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important expositions on Party school work, especially the important speech at the celebration of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Central Party School and the opening ceremony of the 2023 spring semester, fully draw upon the fresh experience from Party school (academies of governance) work practice in recent years, and further standardise all aspects of running and governing Party schools (academies of governance). It is the basic guidance for doing Party school (academies of governance) work well in the new era. The revision and implementation of the Regulations are of great significance for persistently using Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to unite hearts and forge souls, arming the entire Party with the Party’s innovative theory, cultivating a team of governing cadres capable of shouldering the heavy responsibility of the task of national rejuvenation, and advancing the Party’s ideological and theoretical development.” 这次修订的《条例》，全面贯彻习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想，深入贯彻党的二十大和二十届二中、三中全会精神，认真贯彻落实习近平总书记关于党校工作的重要论述特别是在中央党校建校90周年庆祝大会暨2023年春季学期开学典礼上的重要讲话精神，充分吸收近年来党校（行政学院）工作实践中的新鲜经验，对党校（行政学院）办学治校的方方面面作出进一步规范，是做好新时代党校（行政学院）工作的基本遵循。《条例》的修订和实施，对于坚持不懈用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想凝心铸魂，用党的创新理论武装全党，培养造就堪当民族复兴重任的执政骨干队伍，推进党的思想理论建设，具有重要意义.
In terms of the changes, the report tells us that the “Regulations maintain the basic original framework, while enriching and improving the content. Five new articles have been added, 66 articles have been modified. There are a total of 13 chapters and 75 articles. The main changes are in the following areas:
First, the functional positioning, overall requirements, and objectives of Party schools (academies of governance) will be improved. The Regulations clarify that Party schools (academies of governance) are the primary channel for educating and training cadres and Party members. They include ‘deeply understanding the decisive significance of the Two Establishments’ and ‘cultivating talents for the Party and contributing ideas to the Party’ as overall requirements. At the same time, in light of changing circumstances and tasks, some revisions have been made to the working principles of Party schools (academies of governance). 一是完善党校（行政学院）的职能定位、总体要求和目标原则。明确党校（行政学院）是教育培训干部和党员的主渠道，将“深刻领悟‘两个确立’的决定性意义”、“为党育才、为党献策”等写入总体要求。同时结合形势任务的变化，对党校（行政学院）工作原则作了部分修改.
Second, the establishment and system of Party schools (academies of governance) will be improved. The Regulations clarify that Party committees of state-run general institutions of higher learning must establish Party schools, add provisions such as persisting in the whole Party running Party schools, the top officials of Party committees who concurrently serve as principals (presidents) of Party schools (academies of governance) are the main persons responsible, Party schools (academies of governance) at all levels should strengthen exchanges and cooperation with each other. The Regulations put forward targeted measures for strengthening the building of county-level Party schools (academies of governance). 二是完善党校（行政学院）设置和体制。明确国家举办的普通高等学校党委应当设立党校，增加坚持全党办党校、兼任党校（行政学院）校长（院长）的党委负责同志是主要责任人、各级党校（行政学院）之间应当加强交流合作等规定，对加强县级党校（行政学校）建设提出有针对性的举措.
Third, new content is added related to carrying out regularised training, especially basic training. The Regulations clarify specific requirements for carrying out basic training, further stipulate the main training objects, main classes, and academic systems of Party schools (academies of governance) at all levels. 三是新增开展常态化培训特别是基本培训相关内容。明确开展基本培训的具体要求，进一步规定了各级党校（行政学院）的主要培训对象、主要班次和学制.
Fourth, the teaching layout has been optimised and the teaching content has been standardised. The content regarding expanding students’ worldview has been revised to ‘enhance students’ ability to perform their duties with a focus on comprehensively improving their capacity for socialist modernisation.’ Key content regarding Party theory education, Party spirit education, and job performance training has been enriched and improved. 四是优化教学布局，规范教学内容。将拓展学员的世界眼光等内容修改为“以全面提高社会主义现代化建设能力为重点增长学员的履职本领”，并对党的理论教育、党性教育和履职能力培训的重点内容作了充实和完善.
Fifth, the Regulations strengthen scientific research and decision-making consultation work. The requirements include strengthening theoretical and policy research, strengthening the establishment of scientific research integrity, strengthening organized scientific research, and strengthening ideological work. 五是强化科研和决策咨询工作。要求加强理论研究、对策研究，加强科研诚信建设，加强有组织科研，做好意识形态工作.
Sixth, the Regulations focus on strengthening faculty development. They emphasise that the proportion of full-time faculty members in a school (academy) should generally be no less than 40%. Provisions will be made to strengthen the assessment of the political qualities of the faculty, establish and improve access mechanisms for faculty recruitment and teaching, and implement a performance-based salary system for public institutions. 六是突出抓好教师队伍建设。强调专职教师占校（院）职工总数的比例一般不低于40%，对加强教师政治素质考察考核，建立健全师资招聘、教师授课等方面的准入机制，以及落实事业单位绩效工资制度等作出规定.
There’s a question on what the Regulations say with regard to training. The report says:
“General Secretary Xi Jinping has clearly put forward the Party schools’ original aspiration of ‘cultivating talent for the Party, offering advice to the Party’, and has emphasised that cultivating talent for the Party is where the Party schools’ unique value lies. At present, China is in a critical period of comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernisation, and there is an urgent need for the broad ranks of Party members and cadres to improve their capabilities and enhance their skills.
The Regulations, with a holistic and strategic focus, provide a series of provisions for strengthening Party personnel training and conducting basic training. Regarding work requirements, they stipulate that basic training should clarify key elements such as the target audience, content, methods, duration, and cycle. They insist on providing all necessary training, fully utilising a combination of online and offline methods, live broadcasts, and recorded broadcasts, and upholding centralised learning. Party schools (academies of governance) where conditions permit should provide centralised residential training.” 习近平总书记鲜明提出“为党育才、为党献策”的党校初心，强调为党育才是党校的独特价值所在。当前，我国正处于以中国式现代化全面推进强国建设、民族复兴伟业的关键时期，迫切需要广大党员、干部提升能力、增强本领。《条例》着眼全局和战略，对加强为党育才、开展基本培训作出一系列规定，在工作要求上，规定开展基本培训应当明确培训的对象、内容、方式、学制、周期等关键要素，坚持应训尽训，充分运用线上线下、直播录播相结合等方式，坚持集中学习，有条件的党校（行政学院）应当做到集中住校培训;
It adds: “In terms of training content, the Regulations highlight the primary and core disciplines of Party theoretical education and Party spirit education, strengthen training in job performance, and emphasise focusing on using the latest achievements of the sinicization and modernisation of Marxism to unify thinking, will, and action, and persistently using Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to gather hearts and forge souls. 在培训内容上，突出党的理论教育和党性教育的主业主课地位，加强履职能力培训，强调重点抓好用马克思主义中国化时代化最新成果统一思想、统一意志、统一行动，坚持不懈用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想凝心铸魂.
Another question is about providing suggestions and strategies for the Party. It says:
The Regulations focus on offering strategies for the Party and striving to be a vital force in the Party’s ideological and theoretical construction, putting forward new requirements for Party schools (academies of governance) to strengthen scientific research and decision-making consultation work.
First, they further clarify the positioning and key tasks of scientific research, emphasising that scientific research is the foundational work of Party schools (academies of governance), with main tasks being to carry out theoretical research and policy research, with the focus on strengthening systematic and theoretical research and interpretation of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and strengthening research on major practical problems.
Second, they call for strengthening the integrity of scientific research and formulating academic norms that reflect the distinctive characteristics of Party schools (academies of governance).
Third, in terms of scientific research management, they stipulate that organiSed scientific research should be strengthened, management and service work should be innovated, and assessment and evaluation of scientific research and decision-making consultation achievements should be coordinated and optimised.
Fourth, they clarify that Party schools (academies of governance) are important front-line positions for the Party’s ideological work, and put forward specific requirements for doing ideological work well from the perspective of adhering to correct political direction, public opinion guidance, and value orientation, innovating ideological and cultural propaganda methods, and speaking out actively and correctly.
答：党校（行政学院）作为党的思想理论战线的重要方面军，承担着为党献策的重要职责。《条例》聚焦为党献策、努力当好党的思想理论建设的生力军，对党校（行政学院）加强科研和决策咨询工作提出新的要求。一是进一步明确科研工作的定位和重点任务，强调科研是党校（行政学院）的基础工作，主要任务是开展理论研究、对策研究，重点是加强对习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的体系化、学理化研究阐释，加强重大现实问题研究。二是要求加强科研诚信建设，制定体现党校（行政学院）特色的学术规范。三是在科研管理方面，规定应当加强有组织科研，创新管理服务工作，统筹优化科研和决策咨询成果的考核和评价。四是明确党校（行政学院）是党的意识形态工作的重要前沿阵地，并从坚持正确的政治方向、舆论导向、价值取向，创新思想文化宣传方式方法，积极发声、正确发声等方面对做好意识形态工作提出具体要求.
Also on the front page, there’s a commentary discussing these regulations. It says:
“The revision and implementation of the Regulations are of great significance for strengthening the Party’s overall leadership over Party schools, unremittingly gathering hearts and forging souls of Party schools with Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, cultivating a core contingent of governing officials capable of shouldering the heavy responsibility of national rejuvenation, and advancing the Party’s ideological and theoretical development.” 《条例》的修订和实施，对于加强党对党校工作的全面领导，坚持不懈用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想凝心铸魂，培养造就堪当民族复兴重任的执政骨干队伍，推进党的思想理论建设，具有重要意义.
Attaching importance to the role of Party schools is a fine tradition and political advantage of our Party. Throughout the historical periods of revolution, construction, and reform, Party schools (academies of governance) at all levels have consciously obeyed and served the Party’s central task, always upholding the Party schools’ original mission of ‘educating talents for the Party and offering advice to the Party’, effectively supporting our Party in achieving one victory after another. In the new era, as the cause of the Party and the country builds on the past and opens up the future, new and higher requirements have been put forward for Party school work. Fully implementing General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important expositions on Party school work, closely centering on the fundamental principle of upholding the ‘Party’ as the Party schools’ surname, and on upholding and practicing the Party schools’ original aspiration, providing institutional guarantees for cultivating talent for the Party with high quality and offering advice to the Party at a high level, will certainly better manifest the unique value of Party schools (academies of governance) on the new journey. 重视发挥党校作用，是我们党的优良传统和政治优势。在革命、建设、改革各个历史时期，各级党校（行政学院）自觉服从服务于党的中心工作，始终坚守“为党育才、为党献策”的党校初心，有力支撑了我们党不断取得新胜利。新时代党和国家事业继往开来，对党校工作提出了新的更高要求。全面贯彻习近平总书记关于党校工作的重要论述，紧紧围绕坚持党校姓党根本原则、围绕坚守践行党校初心，为高质量为党育才、高水平为党献策提供制度保证，定能在新征程上更好彰显党校（行政学院）的独特价值.
On training, it adds:
“It is necessary to must firmly establish Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the central theme of teaching, building a systematic and in-depth curriculum system for the Party’s innovative theory, a scientific and comprehensive curriculum system for Party spirit education, and a pragmatic and practical curriculum system for performance-of-duties ability. We must educate and guide students to deeply grasp the decisive significance of the Two Establishments, resolutely uphold the ‘Two Safeguards’, and consciously become firm believers and faithful practitioners of the Party’s innovative theory in the new era.” 要坚持把习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想作为教学的主题主线，构建系统深入的党的创新理论课程体系、科学完备的党性教育课程体系和务实管用的履职能力课程体系，教育引导广大学员深刻领悟“两个确立”的决定性意义，坚决做到“两个维护”，自觉做新时代党的创新理论的坚定信仰者和忠实实践者.
Finally, there’s a report informing that as per the National Energy Administration, in the first half of this year, the amount of investment completed in key energy projects under construction and planned to start within the year exceeded 1.5 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21.6%. The year-on-year growth rate of investment completed in the eastern, central, and western regions all exceeded 20%, and newly-added energy investment is continuously concentrating ‘toward green and new’.
Page 2: There’s a report (English report) on Jin Minqing being appointed the head of the Institute of Contemporary China Studies. Yang Youbin was removed from the post of vice minister of veterans affairs, and Li Junjie is no longer deputy head of the National Immigration Administration.
Page 3: There’s an interview-based article featuring Kishore Mahbubani. Some quotes from the piece:
“China’s role in global affairs is becoming increasingly prominent. As a responsible major country, China is working hard to provide the world with more high-quality international public goods…”
“I am very optimistic about China’s economic prospects. From electric vehicles and power battery technology to solar panels, wind turbines, and intelligent robots, China is one of the world’s largest investors in future industries. In the long run, China's positive economic development trend remains unchanged…”
“China is actively addressing climate change, promoting the implementation of the Paris Agreement, and working to lower the prices of renewable energy products like solar panels. This is China’s gift to the world and will help the international community effectively address climate change…”
Page 9: The entire page is dedicated to a research article by Justin Yifu Lin on Xi Jinping’s Economic Thought. This is a really interesting article because it articulates a vision and pathway and contrasts that with what is described as the Western development model. I am not detailing the full piece because it is too long. But below is the topline summary from the article and then I am detailing the section where he distinguishes Xi’s Economic Thought with Western theories. The really striking bit is the complete repudiation of what are classified as Western economic and development models.
“Since the advent of the new era, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core, with tremendous political courage, has vigorously advanced theoretical exploration and innovation, and, with an entirely new vision, deepened understanding of the laws of Communist Party governance, the laws of socialist construction, and the laws of the development of human society, forming Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Economic work is the central task of the Party and the country, and doing economic work well is a major task for the Communist Party of China in governing the country. Xi Jinping Economic Thought is an important part of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. It is a concentrated manifestation of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core continuously promoting theoretical, practical, and institutional innovation in the economic sphere. In connotation, Xi Jinping Economic Thought inherits and develops Marxist political economy; in scope, it draws on and surpasses Western economics. It is a scientific theory grounded in national conditions, with a global perspective, and guiding the future. It provides scientific guidance for us to accurately grasp the laws governing economic and social development and advance socialist economic development. As an authoritative textbook for the entire Party and the people of all ethnic groups throughout the country to deeply study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, especially Xi Jinping Economic Thought, Selected Works of Xi Jinping on the Economy, Volume One, includes General Secretary Xi Jinping’s most important and most fundamental works on economic construction from November 2012 to December 2024, and points out the correct direction and provides the fundamental basis for doing economic work well in the new era.” 新时代以来，以习近平同志为核心的党中央以巨大的政治勇气，大力推进理论探索和创新，以全新的视野深化对共产党执政规律、社会主义建设规律、人类社会发展规律的认识，形成了习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想。经济工作是党和国家的中心工作，做好经济工作是中国共产党治国理政的重大任务。习近平经济思想是习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的重要组成部分，是以习近平同志为核心的党中央不断推进理论创新、实践创新、制度创新在经济领域的集中体现。习近平经济思想在内涵上继承和发展了马克思主义政治经济学，在外延上借鉴和超越了西方经济学，是立足国情、放眼世界、引领未来的科学理论，为我们准确把握经济社会发展规律、推进社会主义经济建设提供了科学指引。作为全党全国各族人民深入学习贯彻习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想特别是习近平经济思想的权威教材，《习近平经济文选》第一卷收入习近平总书记2012年11月至2024年12月期间关于经济建设最重要、最基本的著作，为做好新时代经济工作指明了正确方向、提供了根本遵循.
In what I see as the most significant section of the article, he makes the case that Xi Jinping Economic Thought “deeply rooted” in China’s “national conditions and closely aligned with my country's development stage.”
“Developing socialism is a long-term historical process, and moreover a process that needs to be divided into different historical stages. China’s remarkable achievements since reform and opening up are grounded in a profound understanding of the stages of socialist development. The theoretical framework of Western economics was formed in the context of relatively mature capitalist market economies, and is ill-suited to explain the practice of the socialist development stage, let alone provide guidance for China’s reform and development. For example, the modernisation process in developed Western countries proceeded linearly, evolving from agricultural to industrial society and then from industrial civilisation to digital civilisation. Western economic theories, such as ‘industrialization theory’ and ‘urbanization models’ are based on the experience of a single phase. China’s socialist modernisation process exhibits a ‘spatiotemporal compression’ characteristic: within just a few decades, we must complete the industrialisation and urbanisation processes that took developed countries hundreds of years, while simultaneously advancing digital and green transformation; we must solve the dual urban–rural structural problems arising from the transformation from an agricultural society to an industrial society, while also addressing environmental constraints in the transition from industrial civilisation to ecological civilisation; we must both make up for ‘shortcomings’ in traditional industries and seize the ‘opportunities’ for emerging industry development. This special stage of multiple overlapping transformations makes China’s development tasks far more complex than the single-stage tasks of the West. Western economics is incapable of addressing the real challenge of China’s ‘multi-stage task, simultaneous advancement’.” 紧扣我国发展阶段。发展社会主义是一个长期历史过程，而且是需要划分为不同历史阶段的过程。我国改革开放以来的伟大实践，基于对社会主义发展阶段的深刻把握。西方经济学的理论框架形成于发展较为成熟的资本主义市场经济，难以解释社会主义发展阶段的实践，更无法为我国改革发展提供指导。比如，西方发达国家的现代化进程是线性推进的，从农业社会到工业社会、从工业文明到数字文明的转型依次展开。西方经济学中的“工业化理论”“城市化模型”等，都是基于单一阶段的经验总结。我国社会主义现代化进程呈现出“时空压缩”特征：在短短几十年内，既要完成发达国家几百年的工业化、城镇化进程，又要同步推进数字化、绿色化转型；既要解决农业社会向工业社会转型中的城乡二元结构问题，又要应对工业文明向生态文明过渡中的环境约束问题；既要补齐传统产业的“短板”，又要抢占新兴产业发展的“先机”。这种多重转型叠加的特殊阶段，使中国面临的发展任务远比西方单一阶段复杂。西方经济学无法应对中国“多阶段任务同步推进”的现实挑战.
Xi Jinping Economic Thought emphasises steadily advancing new-type industrialisation, informatisation, urbanisation, and agricultural modernisation. It also incorporates the requirement of high-quality development throughout the entire process of new industrialisation, focusing on accelerating the comprehensive green transformation of economic development while simultaneously advancing new industrialisation. In doing so, it breaks the Western linear dogma of ‘pollute first, clean up later’ and ‘industrialise first, informatise later’, opening a path of leapfrog development. 习近平经济思想强调扎实推进新型工业化、信息化、城镇化、农业现代化，并把高质量发展的要求贯穿新型工业化全过程、注重在推进新型工业化的同时加快经济发展全面绿色转型等，打破了西方“先污染后治理”“先工业化后信息化”的线性教条，走出了跨越式发展道路.
For example, many Western economic theories are based on the development experiences of small and medium-sized countries, often overlooking the profound impact of national scale on economic development. As a super-large country with a population of over 1.4 billion, China’s total population exceeds the combined population of all developed countries. Multiplying any per capita target by over 1.4 billion people presents a formidable challenge. For example, as our country's grain demand grows rigidly, the pressure to firmly hold China's rice bowl is still relatively great; as population structure changes, creating new employment positions must pay even greater effort; and so on. These challenges of super-large scale cannot be found in the theoretical arsenal of Western economics. 又如，西方经济学的许多理论是建立在中小规模国家发展经验基础上的，往往忽视国家规模对经济发展的深刻影响。我国作为一个拥有14亿多人口的超大规模国家，人口总量超过现有发达国家人口总和，要实现的任何人均指标，乘以14亿多，都将成为巨大挑战。比如，随着我国粮食需求刚性增长，端牢中国饭碗的压力仍然较大；随着人口结构变化，创造新增就业岗位必须付出更大努力；等等。这种超大规模难题，在西方经济学理论库中找不到答案.
Xi Jinping Economic Thought, grounded in leveraging China’s advantages of scale, proposes a series of original ideas: Building a new development pattern based on a super-large domestic market, establishing effective systems to expand domestic demand, releasing its potential, accelerating the cultivation of a complete domestic demand system; strengthening demand-side management, expanding household consumption, raising consumption levels, so that building a super-large domestic market becomes a sustainable historical process; leveraging the advantage of concentrating resources to accomplish major undertakings and achieving breakthroughs in major projects and core technology challenges; leveraging the comparative advantages of different regions, promoting the rational flow and efficient aggregation of various factors, enhancing the driving force for innovative development, accelerating the formation of a driving system for high-quality development, and forming a regionally complementary, high-quality development layout; and so on. These practices break through the Western governance dogma of ‘small government, big market’, demonstrating the governance wisdom of a major country. Western economics cannot comprehend such a ‘big-country development logic’, much less offer solutions to the challenges of super-large scale.” 习近平经济思想立足发挥我国规模优势，提出一系列原创性思想：立足超大规模国内市场构建新发展格局，通过建立起扩大内需的有效制度，释放内需潜力，加快培育完整内需体系，加强需求侧管理，扩大居民消费，提升消费层次，使建设超大规模的国内市场成为一个可持续的历史过程；发挥集中力量办大事优势，在重大工程、核心技术攻关领域实现突破；发挥各地区比较优势，促进各类要素合理流动和高效集聚，增强创新发展动力，加快构建高质量发展的动力系统，形成优势互补、高质量发展的区域经济布局；等等。这些实践突破了西方“小政府、大市场”的治理教条，展现出大国治理智慧。西方经济学无法理解这种“大国发展逻辑”，更无法提供应对超大规模难题的方案.
For example, when explaining institutional change, Western economics either advocates for spontaneous market order or promotes radical ‘shock therapy’-style reforms. Neither of these approaches can scientifically explain China’s historic transition from a highly centralised planned economy to a vibrant socialist market economy. In practice, some countries have run into difficulties by blindly copying Western ‘shock therapy’, drawing profound lessons. Xi Jinping Economic Thought emphasises the need to combine top-level design with navigating the river by feeling the stones, advancing reform within the framework of the rule of law, and correctly balancing the relationship between reform, development, and stability. These principles have guided China in successfully continuing its ‘two miracles’ of rapid economic development and long-term social stability, avoiding potential social risks in the process of improving its systems and mechanisms. 再如，西方经济学在解释制度变迁时，要么主张市场自发秩序，要么推崇“休克疗法”式激进改革。这些都无法对我国从高度集中的计划经济体制到充满活力的社会主义市场经济体制的历史性转变作出科学解释。在实践中，一些国家照搬西方“休克疗法”陷入困境，教训十分深刻。习近平经济思想强调必须把顶层设计和摸着石头过河结合起来、必须在法治轨道上推进改革、必须正确处理改革发展稳定的关系等，指引我国成功续写了经济快速发展和社会长期稳定“两大奇迹”新篇章，避免了完善体制机制过程中可能出现的社会风险.
He adds:
“The economic system is the institutional embodiment of economic relations, and the basic socialist economic system is the institutional embodiment of China’s production relations. The development miracles created since China’s reform and opening up, especially since the new era, stem from the self-improvement and development of the socialist economic system. The ‘code’ of this miracle lies in a deep grasp of, adherence to, and development of the Chinese characteristics of the economic system. Xi Jinping Economic Thought, on the basis of preserving the fundamental orientation while innovating, adheres to and improves the basic socialist economic system, highlighting the Chinese characteristics of the economic system. 彰显经济制度的中国特色。经济制度是经济关系在制度上的反映，社会主义基本经济制度是我国生产关系在制度上的体现。我国改革开放特别是新时代以来创造的发展奇迹，源于社会主义经济制度的自我完善与发展。这一奇迹的密码，在于对经济制度的中国特色的深刻把握、坚持与发展。习近平经济思想在守正创新的基础上，坚持和完善社会主义基本经济制度，彰显了经济制度的中国特色.
He then identifies the following characteristics:
First, “the unique characteristics of China’s economic system are reflected in the ownership structure, i.e., public ownership as the mainstay, with multiple forms of ownership developing together. Xi Jinping Economic Thought emphasises that given the vast size of our country, its vast population, and its continued presence in the primary stage of socialism, promoting economic and social development requires concerted efforts from all sectors; many hands make light work. Both the public economy and the non-public economy are important components of the socialist market economy and important foundations for China’s economic and social development. We must unswervingly consolidate and develop the public economy, and unswervingly encourage, support, and guide the development of the non-public economy. 经济制度的中国特色，体现在所有制结构上是公有制为主体、多种所有制经济共同发展。习近平经济思想强调，我们国家这么大、人口这么多，又处于并将长期处于社会主义初级阶段，要把经济社会发展搞上去，就要各方面齐心协力来干，众人拾柴火焰高；公有制经济和非公有制经济都是社会主义市场经济的重要组成部分，都是我国经济社会发展的重要基础；毫不动摇巩固和发展公有制经济，毫不动摇鼓励、支持、引导非公有制经济发展；等等.
Second, the unique characteristics of China’s economic system are reflected in resource allocation, i.e., promoting the better combination of an effective market and a capable government. Xi Jinping Economic Thought emphasises letting the market play the decisive role in resource allocation while better leveraging the role of the government, forming a unique resource allocation mechanism that combines an effective market with a capable government, avoiding the shortcomings of market failure and overcoming the inefficiency of government intervention. This innovative mechanism has demonstrated strong vitality in practice. At the micro level, by deepening price reform and promoting the market-based allocation of factors, market signals guide resources to flow toward efficient areas, stimulating the vitality of various business entities; at the meso level, through precise guidance via industrial policy and regional policy, industrial upgrading and regional coordinated development are promoted; at the macro level, through counter-cyclical and cross-cyclical adjustments in fiscal and monetary policy, systemic risks are prevented, and stable economic operation is maintained. 经济制度的中国特色，体现在资源配置上是推动有效市场和有为政府更好结合。习近平经济思想强调使市场在资源配置中起决定性作用，更好发挥政府作用，形成了有效市场和有为政府相结合的独特的资源配置机制，既避免了市场失灵的弊端，又克服了政府干预的低效。这种机制创新在实践中展现出强大生命力。在微观层面，通过深化价格改革、推动要素市场化配置等举措，让市场信号引导资源流向高效领域，激发各类经营主体活力；在中观层面，通过产业政策、区域政策的精准引导，推动产业升级和区域协调发展；在宏观层面，通过财政政策、货币政策的逆周期和跨周期调节，防范系统性风险，保持经济稳定运行.
Third, “the unique characteristics of the Chinese economic system are reflected in the value orientation of development goals, i.e., upholding a people-centered approach. Xi Jinping Economic Thought adheres to the people-centered development philosophy, prioritising the people as a fundamental position. It takes promoting the common prosperity of all people as the focal point of seeking happiness for the people, and emphasises strengthening basic, inclusive, and comprehensive livelihood projects, reflecting the inherent requirements of the socialist economic system. By contrast, Western economics, born from the soil of capitalist private ownership, whether in the ‘rational man’ assumption of neoclassical economics or the ‘clear property rights’ theory of neoliberalism, serves the institutional logic of maintaining the absolute dominance of private ownership; its concepts are imbued with the ‘law of the jungle’ in which the strong prey on the weak, making it hard to resolve fairness issues in development and leading many Western countries into the predicament of ‘wealth polarization’. 经济制度的中国特色，体现在发展目标的价值取向上是坚持以人民为中心。习近平经济思想坚持以人民为中心的发展思想，以人民至上为根本立场，把促进全体人民共同富裕作为为人民谋幸福的着力点，强调加强基础性、普惠性、兜底性民生建设，体现了社会主义经济制度的内在要求。而诞生于资本主义私有制土壤的西方经济学，无论是新古典经济学的“理性人”假设，还是新自由主义的“产权明晰”理论，都服务于维护私有制绝对主导的制度逻辑，其理念渗透着“弱肉强食”的丛林法则，难以解决发展中的公平问题，导致许多西方国家陷入“贫富分化”的困境.