The second Kiel-Göttingen-CEPR Conference on “China in the Global Economy” took place on July 17 and 18, 2025, at the Leibniz Association in Berlin. A pre-conference dinner was held on the evening of July 16. The conference brought together researchers, policy experts, and practitioners to discuss China’s changing role in the world economy and the consequences for international trade, development, finance, innovation, industrial policy, and global economic governance. The event was organized by Andreas Fuchs, Wan-Hsin Liu, Lei Li, Moritz Schularick, Christoph Trebesch, and Xiaohua Yu.

The program featured two keynote speeches addressing major political and institutional developments in China. Ruixue Jia from the University of California San Diego and CEPR presented research on geopolitics and Chinese education, while David Yang from Harvard University discussed the development of China’s contemporary authoritarian system. These keynote contributions provided a broader framework for examining the interaction between economic change, political institutions, education, and international relations.

The research sessions covered a wide range of topics, including the effects of the trade war, international transport infrastructure and regional development, Chinese aid and elections, international lending and trade finance, innovation and science, political economy, migration, global supply chains, firm productivity, political risk, the international order, and industrial policy. Contributions examined issues such as tariff pass-through, technology sanctions, Chinese overseas lending, patent quality, academic migration, cross-border innovation, foreign direct investment, environmental outcomes, trade disruption, China’s role in international institutions, and the design and international consequences of industrial subsidies.

The conference also connected academic research with current policy debates. A Global China Conversation considered whether Chinese industrial policies are effective and what their domestic and international implications are. A Kiel-MERICS Policy Panel discussed the European Union’s role in responding to the intensifying trade and technology conflict between the United States and China. Participants from research institutions, politics, industry, and the media contributed to these discussions, highlighting the importance of dialogue between academic analysis and practical policymaking.

The conference concluded with discussions on China’s influence on the liberal international order, international trade under uncertainty, and the development of Chinese industrial policy. The organizers gratefully acknowledged financial support from the VolkswagenStiftung within the Momentum project “Tapping innovative data sources to analyze the impact of authoritarian states on global development.”

For further information, please visit the external Conference Website.