Professur für Wirtschaft und Politik Chinas









Prof. Lei Li, Ph.D.



Lei Li is Professor of Economics and Politics of China at the University of Göttingen. Her research focuses on international trade, the Chinese economy, labor, development, and environmental economics, with particular interest in trade wars, economic sanctions, and environmental policy impacts.















Research Expertise



  • Primary Fields: International Trade and Chinese Economy

  • Secondary Fields: Labor Economics, Development Economics, and Environmental Economics

  • Special Focus: Trade wars, economic sanctions, pollution, deforestation, innovation, education, migration, income inequality, and industry clusters










Academic Positions






  • Since 2025

    Research Affiliate, Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW)



  • Since 2024

    Professor of Economics and Politics of China, University of Göttingen



  • Since 2023

    Research Affiliate, CESifo Research Network



  • Since 2019

    Research Affiliate, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)



  • 2019-2024

    Assistant Professor, University of Mannheim



  • 2019-2024

    Member, Collaborative Research Center (CRC TR 224), German Science Foundation



  • 2019-2024

    Member, Mannheim Center for Competition and Innovation (MACCI)



  • 2016-2019

    Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Zurich, Switzerland



  • 2011-2016

    Ph.D. in Economics, Tsinghua University, China



  • 2007-2011

    B.S. in Finance & Mathematics, Beihang University, China














Awards and Scholarships



  • Annual Best Paper Award, Jockey Club Enterprise Sustainability Global Research Institute 2025

  • Young Economist Award, FIW International Economics Conference 2021

  • Certificate of Outstanding Contribution in Reviewing, Journal of Development Economics 2018

  • Excellent Ph.D. Graduate Award (summa cum laude equivalent), Tsinghua University 2016

  • Excellent Ph.D. Graduate Award, Beijing Municipal Education Commission 2016

  • Outstanding Dissertation Prize for Ph.D. Graduates, Tsinghua University 2016

  • Tsinghua First Class Scholarship 2015

  • Top Grade National Scholarship for Graduate Students 2015

  • Young Scholar Award, SEM, Tsinghua University 2014

  • Tsinghua First Prize Scholarship 2014

  • Top Grade National Scholarship for Graduate Students 2013

  • Excellent Economic Paper Award, Minoru Kobayashi China Economic Research Foundation 2013










Funding and Grants



  • Lower Saxony PRO funds for academic events in humanities and social sciences, 2026

  • Conference Grant, Universitätsbund Göttingen e.V., 2026

  • Startup Grant, Göttingen, 2019

  • DAAD: STIBET Doktoranden, 2020

  • Startup Grant, Mannheim, 2019









Conference and Workshop Organization



  • CEPR-Kiel-Göttingen China Conference, 2025 & 2026, Berlin

  • Göttingen China Workshop on Globalization, Macroeconomics, and Development, 2025 & 2026, Göttingen

  • International Economics in Times of Geoeconomic Changes, 2026, Bad Homburg

  • CRC Workshop on Trade, Firms, and Economic Development, 2023, Bad Homburg

  • CRC Workshop on Global Value Chains and Trade Policy, 2021, Mannheim










Referee Service


American Economic Journal: Economic Policy; Economic Journal; European Economic Review; Economics Letters; Economic Policy; International Journal of Industrial Organization; Labour Economics; Journal of Development Economics; Journal of the European Economic Association; Journal of International Economics; Journal of Labor Economics; Journal of Public Economics; Journal of Human Resources; Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization; Journal of Comparative Economics; Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics; Review of Economics and Statistics; Review of World Economics.











Portrait of Lei Li


Quicklinks






Contact


Chair of Economics and Politics of China

Prof. Lei Li, Ph.D.

Faculty of Business and Economics

Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14

Göttingen, 37073, Germany

Office: KWZ 0.705

Tel. +49 621 181-1911

lei.li@uni-goettingen.de


Office hours: by appointment