Xi’s Toughest ‘Common Prosperity’ Test Is Raising China’s Taxes

Whether silencing Hong Kong dissent or countering U.S. sanctions, China can move faster than almost any country in the world to approve complex legislation.

That’s why the yearslong delay to pass sweeping property tax reform, called “crucial” by a top official in 2018, is so telling. The Chinese legislature’s most recent five-year agenda made drafting a real estate tax a priority, but now, more than halfway through, President Xi Jinping’s recently announced property tax plans fall far short of what lawmakers hoped.

As part of the “common prosperity” campaign, which seeks to promote economic equality and narrow ...