China's Impact on International Trade Law

International trade law has enabled China’s integration into the world economy and provided a toolbox for the Chinese leadership to construct a market-oriented trade regime. However, the reverse relationship – how China has influenced international trade law – is often overlooked in the literature. This chapter takes on this task by examining several areas where China has played a role in shaping the rules, regulatory philosophies, and institutional operations of international trade law and governance. It finds that China has successfully reshaped WTO jurisprudence to accommodate its hybrid economic system, integrated its domestic policy into the agendas of certain WTO negotiations, and formed coalitions by uniting the Global South to enhance its bargaining position, thereby affecting the final outcomes of rule-making. The Chinese approach to influencing international trade law is guided by instrumental multilateralism, which reflects a strategic and pragmatic perspective on trade multilateralism.