Chen Binkai: Delving deeper into research on topics of interest to China requires a greater appreciation for international perspectives

The following is a summary of Chen Binkai's comments made during a panel discussion at the Fifth Conference of Government and Economics held at Tsinghua University, Beijing, on April 22, 2022. Dr. Chen is the Assistant President of the Central University of Finance and Economics and Dean of its School of Economics.

On April 27, 2023, the Fifth Annual Conference of Government and Economics, co-hosted by the Society for the Analysis of Government and Economics (SAGE) along with Tsinghua University's School of Social Sciences and the Academic Center for Chinese Economic Practice and Thinking (ACCEPT), was broadcasted online. Chen Binkai, the Assistant President of the Central University of Finance and Economics and Dean of its School of Economics, joined SAGE Co-President and ACCEPT Director David Daokui Li and a panel of distinguished guests for a roundtable discussion after the conclusion of opening remarks and keynote speeches.

Chen Binkai suggested that the development of overall research and learning in the field of contemporary Chinese economics, including the process for furthering its localization in China, may require adopting a greater appreciation for internationalization and standardization: that is to say, relying on international perspectives and standardized approaches to delve deeper into research on topics of interest to China. For that reason, the discipline of government and economics can provide a very promising platform. On the one hand, it establishes an international frame of reference and provides a viable platform for Chinese scholars to conduct research; while on the other hand, it contributes a branch of learning to the international conversation aligned with Chinese practice and with its own systematic discourse.

Regarding the relationship between the government and the market, the question as to how government behavior affects the development of the market and the internal logic behind this behavior represent the main issues currently under discussion in academic circles. Chen regards information efficiency and organizational efficiency to be two of the core concepts that define the interconnected relationship between the government and the market: with the market having a high level of information efficiency and the government having a high level of organizational efficiency. Hence, uncovering the synergies between these two phenomena is a topic of immediate concern for researchers seeking ways to advance related policies.