China is a Communist country (in the Leninist sense), it's just that Shenzhen is a special economic zone. This allows them to keep their ideology while operating within the global market economy.

It's also why Democracy and unbridled Capitalism leaking into Hong Kong is problematic for them. Though, to be fair, Hong Kong is also why Shenzhen has been such a success for them.

"China isn't communist" is the biggest cope ever. It's simply an excuse to imply that their success is inherently related to their """"""embrace"""""" of """"""capitalism"""""" because some people cannot handle the fact that their system is dying, and want to point to the new world leader and imply that the very same system in their country applies to China. It simply does not. Marxism-Leninism is the guiding ideology of the Chinese Communist Party, and they are kicking everyone's ass.

It's essentially a dogwhistle to spot idiots. Anyone who says "China isn't communist" completely lacks even the most basic comprehension of ideological concepts.