China ends its flagship journal ranking, prompting a rethink of scholarly merit

China’s National Science Library has stopped publishing the CAS Journal Partition Table, ending a 20+ year tool for evaluating journals and guiding hiring, funding, and promotions; a private group, Xinrui Scholar, has launched a new ranking using the same methodology, raising questions about independence and transparency and whether it will replace the CAS system or spur broader reform away from journal-based metrics, with early‑career researchers potentially bearing the brunt of the disruption.