Xi Jinping

The most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong. Xi has centralised authority, positioned China as a peer competitor to the US, and pursued a 'dual circulation' economic strategy to reduce dependence on Western technology. His response to US tariffs and chip controls frames the economic dimension of the US-China rivalry.

Xi Jinping was born on June 15, 1953, in Beijing. His father, Xi Zhongxun, was a Communist revolutionary who later fell out of favour; Xi spent years in rural Shaanxi during the Cultural Revolution. He rose through provincial party posts before becoming China's top leader in 2012. In 2018, he abolished presidential term limits, signalling indefinite rule. His foreign policy — assertive on Taiwan, the South China Sea, and trade — reflects a belief that China's moment of strategic opportunity has arrived.