disorderly expansion of capital 资本无序扩张 zīběn wú xù kuòzhāng
Typically targeting monopoly behaviour, this buzz-phrase was flagged at a December 2020 Politburo meeting, then listed by the Central Economic Work Conference among eight key tasks for 2021. A euphemism for ‘high-risk’, firms are deemed ‘disorderly’ when their scale stifles innovation, harms consumer interests and swings public opinion via social media subsidiaries.
Warnings against 'disorderly expansion' were reiterated by the Central Discipline Inspection Commission at the 20th National Party Congress (October 2022). There was a marked switch in focus from entrepreneurs (e.g. Alibaba's Jack Ma) to senior Party cadres. The illustration depicts an unidentified capitalist driving unruly horses labelled 'investment', 'consumption' and 'exports' (of capital).