The general discussion began with several questions regarding the direction of China's innovation policy. First, Maria Socorro Gochoco-Bautista asked the authors to provide more discussion of China's shift from policies focused on the support of industrialization to policies focused on technology and innovation implemented through direct intervention. Gochoco-Bautista noted that increasingly active government intervention in innovation by China stands in contrast with current discussions in the Philippines about the potential removal of tax holidays that are provided to pioneering firms.
Kiichiro Fukusaku also pushed the authors to further elaborate on China's technology policies and to provide firm information that would shed light on industry strategy. To begin, Fukusaku noted that the distinction between state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and non-SOE firms may not be as stark as imagined. For example, Fukusaku described the coordinated operations of SINOPEC, an SOE holding company, and other firms that are privatized entities, asking whether the SOE...