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China discourages trend-chasing among officials, warning of ‘involution’


As the period covered by China’s next five-year plan begins, the official newspaper of the country’s ruling Communist Party urged local governments to curb the herd behaviour that could fuel “involution” – the fierce competition that has driven down prices and undermined sustainable growth within several industries.

“China has a vast territory, and the imbalances between regions and between urban and rural areas remain significant. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for high-quality development,” the People’s Daily said in an editorial on Wednesday.

“Otherwise, we would end up with identical cities and a cycle of ‘involution’ that leads nowhere.”

The editorial called for localities to leverage their comparative advantages and deepen their research into differentiated development paths tailored to their resources, geography and existing industries rather than blindly chasing trends.

“[Local authorities] must avoid jumping on policy bandwagons or obsessing over ‘new and hi-tech’ labels for their own sake. Such a rush, followed by abrupt abandonment later, creates a mess.”

The article was credited to “Zhong Caiping”, a new pen name for the People’s Daily, according to the newspaper’s website. The pseudonym – one of several deployed in official media to designate pieces of note – resembles a name widely viewed as representing the party’s Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission.
A high-profile eight-part op-ed series was published under that byline, “Zhong Caiwen”, before the fourth plenum of the party’s powerful Central Committee late last year.

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