New tack needed for foreign firms in China as Xi boosts Party grip

Hong Kong

MULTINATIONAL companies (MNCs) have spent decades mastering the art of government relations in China. Now, as President Xi Jinping extends the Communist Party's reach over policy making, they are starting to shift course.

The Conference Board, whose 1,200 members include Nestle SA and Wal-Mart Stores Inc, is among those advocating a new approach to influencing policy in China that focuses on party organs, as well as government agencies.

The research group expects to publish in May the results of a study on the "changing dynamic of party-state relations" to help foreign companies navigate the country'…