Making Space for the “New” State Capitalism


For at least the past decade, many commentators have pointed to the presence of a “new” state capitalism. This refers to forms of state intervention to contain recent crises (such as quantitative easing), the global expansion of “marketized” state-owned enterprises and “national champions,” the activities of sovereign wealth funds, the renewal of industrial policy and various forms of economic nationalism in advanced capitalist economies, and the consolidation of state-led development in China and other emerging capitalist economies. In contrast to the “old” state capitalism that prevailed from the late 19th to the mid-20th century, for this literature the “new” state capitalism is increasingly integrated into transnational circuits of capital, including global networks of production, trade, finance, infrastructure and corporate ownership.

The session aims to foster critical geographical engagement with the state capitalism literature. Topics and questions addressed (both theoretically and empirically) in the special session will include:

The session will feature papers which are part of a forthcoming theme issue of EPA: Economy and Space. We expect around 10-15 papers. As discussed with the organisers of the conference, the special session will be linked to an EPA-sponsored panel.

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