Placing the Transformation of State-owned Enterprises in North-east China: The State, Region and Firm in a Transitional Economy

H<sc>u</sc> F. Z. Y. and L<sc>in</sc> G. C. S. Placing the transformation of state-owned enterprises in North-east China: the state, region and firm in a transitional economy, <italic>Regional Studies</italic>. This study examines the nature of firm--region nexus in the transformation of state-owned enterprises in the Chinese transitional economy. A case study of the machinery sector in the Shenyang city-region of north-east China reveals a close relationship between the organizational transformation of state-owned enterprises and a regionally specific institutional environment featured by a product--market orientation toward some large, key construction projects and political commitment to achieving key equipment indigenization with a heavy reliance upon the internal labour market. The study advocates a more contextualized analysis of the positionality, interests and motivations of China's state-owned enterprises grounded in different regional and institutional contexts.