The Logic of the Market: An Insider's View of Chinese Economic Reform

by Weiying Zhang, Matthew Dale (Translator)

Overview

The Logic of the Market by Weiying Zhang—considered China’s “leading market liberal”—comprises his most influential essays on economics over the past three decades. First published in China in 2010, this revised edition contains three new essays, which offer those outside China a deeper understanding of the Chinese economy. “Market competition is a really just competition to create value for others… Only through this approach did the Western economy advance over the past 200 years. It is also the reason for China’s economic marvel over the past 30 years,” writes Weiying. Readers will appreciate Weiying’s ability to address both everyday economic issues and the questions that confront a nation’s leaders, not the least a nation seeking to escape mass poverty.

The economic reforms and subsequent growth in China may be the most astonishing and hopeful event of our age. Weiying was among the leaders who set China on its path of change. Here he elucidates the pitfalls and the progress of economic reform, celebrating leaders who mixed sustained idealism with judicious compromise. Readers seeking to learn from China’s successes will find much of interest here. Weiying emphasizes the importance of entrepreneurs in the new China. He concludes, “The key for China, as the country with the world’s largest population, to return to being the largest economy lies in allowing the entrepreneurial spirit to develop the potential of the domestic market.” For that to happen, Weiying recommends that China continue to reduce the state-owned economy, lessen government control over the economy, and—over the next 30 years—emphasize political reform to build a constitutional democracy.

His thinking is not limited to China. Some of these essays also focus on the global financial crisis—how Keynesian policies can only be effective for the short term and will bring long-term negative consequences. Weiying provides a unique perspective on his country’s market economy, implementation of economic policies, and the potential for Chinese economic development. “I hope that the logic of the market becomes every person’s ideal,” he writes. “That is my reason for writing this book.”

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781939709615
Publisher:	Cato Institute
Publication date:	01/20/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	418
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Weiying Zhang is widely regarded as the leading advocate of the free market in China as well as an authority on the theory of the firm and ownership reform. His insightful and provocative opinions about China’s reforms have been widely reported both in Chinese and international media. The Wall Street Journal called him “China’s Anti-Keynesian Insurgent.” Since 1997, Zhang has taught economics at Peking University, and was the Dean of the Guanghua School of Management between 2006 and 2010. He is the chief economist for the China Entrepreneurs Forum. He is the author of nine books, including The Theory of the Firm and Chinese Enterprise Reform (1999); Prices, the Market, and Entrepreneurship (2006); Thirty Years of Chinese Reform (2008); and Games and Society (2013).
Matthew Dale studied Chinese at the Beijing Foreign Studies University and Fudan University. He has worked throughout China for American companies.

Table of Contents

Preface to the English Edition xi

Preface to the Second Chinese Edition xv

Preface to the First Chinese Edition xvii

Introduction: The Logic of the Market and China's Reforms 1

Part 1 The Nature of the Market 19

1 Understanding and Safeguarding the Market Economy 21

2 Profits and Corporate Social Responsibility 43

3 Is State Ownership Consistent with a Market Economy? The Chinese Experience 59

4 The Anti-Competition Nature of the Anti-Monopoly Law 81

5 Liberalize Commercial Activity 87

6 Good Policy and Bad Policy 93

7 The Market and Morality 101

Part 2 The Logic of China's Reform

8 Rational Thinking on China's Reforms 115

9 China's Gradual Reform: A Historical Perspective 137

10 Property Rights Reform, the Rise of Entrepreneurs, and China's Economic Development 157

11 China's State-Owned Enterprise Reform: A Corporate Governance Perspective 199

12 China's Price Reform 235

13 Market Reforms and Income Distribution 283

Part 3 The Origins of the Financial Crisis 299

14 Understanding the Crisis is More Important than Reacting to It 301

15 The Economy is Not a Single Product of GDP 315

16 Financial Crises and the Development of Economics 329

Part 4 The Prospect of China's Future

17 Taking the Pulse of Future Chinese Economic Growth and Systemic Reform 339

Notes 367

Index 397