Title: The Dual-role Doctrine in the CPTPP: Implications for China’s SOE Reform

Author: Ma Lin

Abstract: The expanding role of state–owned enterprises (SOEs) in the global economy has prompted high-standard regional trade agreements to develop new disciplines governing SOE conduct and state support. Chapter 17 of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) represents the most advanced framework to date, particularly in its treatment of non-commercial assistance. This article examines the “dual-role doctrine” embedded in CPTPP Chapter 17, under which SOEs are treated simultaneously as recipients and providers of non-commercial assistance. By contrasting this approach with subsidy disciplines under the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework, this article identifies a significant doctrinal shift in international economic law and assesses its implications for China’s ongoing SOE reform. It further argues that recent domestic developments in SOE governance, transparency, and fair competition review reflect incremental steps toward alignment with CPTPP standards, and proposes a phased and pragmatic pathway for reconciling SOE reform with emerging international subsidy disciplines.

Keywords: State-owned Enterprises (SOEs), The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Dual-role Doctrine, Non-commercial Assistance, Fair Competition Review