China in the New World

By Edward Tse, Professor of Managerial Practice of Strategy, CKGSB

China in the New World: Why Global Companies Must Put China at the Core of Their Global Plans explores how China’s changing role in the global economy is reshaping business strategy — and why companies around the world need to rethink what China means for their future. As the world moves towards a more multipolar order, Professor Edward Tse argues, China can no longer be viewed simply as a large consumer market or a center for global manufacturing and supply chains — it is increasingly a source of innovation, technology, knowledge, business models, industry standards and capital, while Chinese companies grow more competitive and international. The book is published by Penguin Random House SEA and is available now — order worldwide on Amazon.

For global companies, this creates both challenges and opportunities. Not every company needs to be in China, Tse argues, but its growing influence will be felt across sectors and geographies, and business leaders increasingly need to understand China’s impact on their industries and incorporate it into their global strategies. Drawing on more than three decades of experience advising Chinese and multinational companies, Tse examines the forces behind China’s transformation, the rise of a new generation of Chinese companies, and what these changes mean for global business.

Why China Matters to Global Business Strategy

The central argument of China in the New World is that understanding China today requires looking beyond the size of its economy: China remains a major market, manufacturing center and supply-chain hub, but its capabilities now extend across advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, green technology, digital platforms and new business models. For multinational companies, the question is therefore no longer simply “What is our strategy for the China market?” but increasingly “What role should China play in our global strategy?” The book explores this question through four interconnected themes:

1. Understanding China’s Context

To understand China’s future role in global business, Tse first examines the forces that created the China of today — the interaction between government, entrepreneurship, foreign investment, market competition and technological development. Central to his thinking is a “fourth C” of strategy: context. Beyond companies, competitors and customers, business leaders need to understand the constantly changing environment in which they operate, and China’s scale, diversity and speed of change make this particularly important.

2. The Rise of China’s New Corporate Champions

Chinese companies have evolved from followers into increasingly important innovators and global competitors, developing strengths across industries including electric vehicles, batteries, advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, telecommunications, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and digital technologies — and are now taking capabilities built in the domestic market into international ones. For global businesses, their rise creates new competitive pressures, but also opportunities to learn, collaborate and develop new capabilities.

3. New Models of Competition and Collaboration

China’s growing business capabilities do not create a simple choice between competing with Chinese companies and withdrawing from China. Instead, Tse sees new forms of cross-border relationships emerging, where competition and collaboration increasingly coexist — global companies exploring partnerships that provide access to Chinese innovation, R&D, advanced manufacturing, technical talent and supplier ecosystems, while Chinese companies expand and adapt their capabilities for international markets.

4. China and the Emerging Multipolar World

The book places these business changes within a wider transformation of the global order. Tse argues that the world is moving towards multipolarity, shaped by forces pulling economies apart — geopolitical tensions, tariffs, technology restrictions — and forces bringing them together through trade, investment and commercial relationships. The rise of the Global South is a key part of this shift, as countries across Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America draw on investment, technology and ideas from both China and the West, and China’s own global influence extends beyond the products it manufactures to capital, technology, knowledge, business models and standards.

Rethinking China Strategy for a New Era

China in the New World challenges business leaders to rethink what a “China strategy” means. For some companies, China will remain an important market; for others, its significance may lie in supply chains, technology, innovation, competitors, partnerships or industry standards, and companies in the Global South will need to consider which elements of China’s development experience are relevant to their own markets. There is therefore no single China strategy for every organization — rather than a plan for doing business in China, Tse argues it is about determining what role China should play in a company’s global operations and long-term competitiveness.

The book is written for business executives and those who advise them, investors, policymakers, academics, researchers and China watchers seeking to understand China’s changing place in the global economy and its implications for business strategy.

“As we enter a new multipolar world, China’s role will become even more important. No longer simply a market or an epicenter for supply chains, China is becoming a source of innovation, knowledge, business models, standards and capital. Global companies, wherever they are headquartered, must put China at the core of their global strategic plans.”

— Professor Edward Tse

About Edward Tse

Edward Tse is Professor of Managerial Practice of Strategy at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB) and an expert on China business strategy, drawing on more than three decades of experience working with Chinese and multinational companies. He previously led the China practice of Boston Consulting Group and served as managing partner and later chairman for Greater China at Booz Allen Hamilton/Booz & Company, and is the founder of Gao Feng Advisory Company and author of The China Strategy and China’s Disruptors.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Context and Complexity

Part I – Context
Chapter 1: Never Before
Chapter 2: Opening Up
Chapter 3: Into Business
Chapter 4: The Model

Part II – Strategies
Chapter 5: Future-Ready
Chapter 6: New Champions
Chapter 7: New Dimensions
Chapter 8: A New Order

The book moves from understanding the forces behind the China of today to examining what China’s evolution means for companies preparing for the future.

Get the book

Order worldwide on Amazon
View the book on Penguin’s website