Government-linked intermediaries and their roles in Chinese industrial clusters: A case from Haining city

As critical service providers, the importance of intermediaries are increasingly recognized by policymakers in recent years. This paper investigates the roles of intermediaries, especially the roles of government-linked intermediaries in China. A case study was conducted in Haining city which is well known for its leather cluster. We find out that government-linked intermediaries have many distinctiveness compared with other intermediaries. Bridging between governments and firms, they can develop a mixed strategy to promote the development of local industrial cluster and regional economy.