Fragmented Liberalisation in the Chinese Automotive Industry: The Political Logic behind Beijing Hyundai’s Success in the Chinese Market

This paper explains the extraordinary rise of the Beijing Hyundai Motor Company (BHMC), a joint venture between a state-owned enterprise run by the Beijing municipal government and Hyundai Motor Company. Within the span of three years, the BHMC soared to become China’s second-ranked automotive manufacturer in terms of units sold. I highlight the role of the Beijing municipal government in creating favourable market conditions for the BHMC during its initial operation phase (2002–2005). The Beijing municipal government selectively adopted protectionist measures and liberalising measures to promote its locally based company. I characterise this practice as fragmented liberalisation, a system through which sub-national governments discriminately apply WTO or central government regulations to promote their local joint venture partner. In so doing, I also challenge the existing assumption that multinational companies are the drivers of economic liberalisation, by showing Hyundai’s support for local protectionism and industrial policy at the sub-national level