Speaker: Angela Huyue Zhang, Associate Professor of Law, University of Hong Kong; Director, Philip K. H. Wong Center for Chinese Law

China’s economy is at a crossroads, facing its most significant challenges in recent memory. Amidst this economic turmoil, a fierce debate has emerged among experts: Is the current economic downturn a result of ingrained structural issues, recent policy shifts, or escalating geopolitical tensions?

In this talk, Professor Angela Zhang will offer a fresh perspective, steering the conversation towards the impact of law on the Chinese economy. Drawing insights from her latest book, “High Wire: How China Regulates Big Tech and Governs Its Economy,” Professor Zhang will introduce the “Dynamic Pyramid Model” to demystify China’s regulatory governance.  Through this lens, she will explain the consistent regulatory pattern in some of the biggest policy challenges China has faced in recent years, including tech regulation, the covid-19 pandemic control, the energy crisis in 2021, the ongoing property crack down and China’s demographic crisis.  This discussion aims to shed light on the political logic underpinning China’s regulatory policies, while also identifying potential pathways toward economic revival.

Angela Zhang is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Hong Kong and Director of the Philip K. H. Wong Center for Chinese Law. Widely recognized as a leading authority on China’s tech regulation, Angela has written extensively on this topic. She is the author of “Chinese Antitrust Exceptionalism: How the Rise of China Challenges Global Regulation” (Oxford, 2021), which was named one of the Best Political Economy Books of 2021 by ProMarket. Angela’s second book, “High Wire: How China Regulates Big Tech and Governs Its Economy,” was released by Oxford University Press in March 2024. In fall 2024, Angela will join the University of Southern California as a Professor of Law. For more information, please visit her website at AngelaZhang.net, and follow her on Twitter @AngelaZhangHK.