THE SUB-NATIONAL DIMENSION OF CHINA: CHINESE PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENTS AND ITS INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES

Resumo

This article focuses on China process of economic internationalization under a sub-national level perspective. Its main argument is that Chinese province governments have been dynamic actors in the process of promoting economic growth and foreign trade and investment. The study is divided into three parts. First, it presents a review of the Chinese reform in the last century taking into account the role played by provinces and their political leaders. Second, it identifies and describes the institutional framework in which provincial governments are currently influencing China’ international business. Third, it takes a look on the reverse track by showing how some subnational regional governments from some important countries around the world have treated Chinese provincial governments in their strategies to do business with the leading economic Asian raising power.