Nominated for the 2006 IPEG Book Prize Drawing on the research of ten scholars from around the world, this volume evaluates China’s privatization experience by investigating the efficiency and fairness of the sale process and the credibility of the government’s ambition to create world–class state–owned conglomerates. * One of the first book–length works to evaluate China’s privatization experience. * Draws on the research of ten scholars from around the world including Liu Xiaoxuan (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences), Sun Laixiang (SOAS, London University) and Chih–jou Jay Chen (Academic Sinica). * Investigates the factors determining the decision by government officials to sell or retain their firms. * Evaluates how credible the government’s ambition is to create world–class state–owned conglomerates. * Compares the efficiency and fairness of the sales against the lessons learned from the former Soviet bloc. * Explains how the state is withdrawing from key sectors such as automobiles, energy and telecoms.