Originally written as a short course for foreign students visiting China, this compact, this book is a must-read for anyone trying to make sense of the world’s second-largest economy.
In 1949, when the People’s Republic of China was established, it was one of the poorest countries on Earth. China remained poor until 1978 when Deng Xiaoping began to transform the country’s economic system to what has been called Market Socialism or Socialism with Chinese characteristics. Through a system of five-year plans, successive Chinese leaders have continued the liberalization of the Chinese economy, first through the opening of free trade areas, then the protection of private property and private enterprise, as well as the admission of entrepreneurs into the Communist Party. China’s transformation continues under the current leadership of Xi Jinping whose 13th Five-Year Plan and Belt and Road Initiative seek to forever change the global economic order.
