In What Way Can China’s ‘Socialist Market Economy’ Be Regarded as Successful and to What Extent Is It Not Achieving Its Promise?
Question 2: In what way can China’s ‘socialist market economy’ be regarded as successful and to what extent is it not achieving its promise?
China is much more than just a mere country. It has been through many ups and downs and exciting changes in the Chinese society, from changes of dynasties to establishing a name under the ‘7 wonders of the world’ with its creation of the ‘Great Wall of China’. Its heritage and history for the past thousands of years have made China of what it is today. Hence, with Deng Xiaoping’s widely quoted phrases: “crossing the river by grouping for stones”, “Getting rich is glorious”, and “seek truth from facts, and not from ideology”, how has China develop and grown over the years? How did China attain its current economic prosperity? How did China seek the truth of its economy transition from a planned economy to a market economy over the decades?
“In a planned economy, government controls and determine business ownership, profits, and resource allocation. The theory behind a planned economy is ‘communism’, which suggests that all property is shared equally by the people in a community under the direction of a strong central government. It is an economic system that involves public ownership of businesses. Rather than entrepreneurs, the government decides what products consumers will be offered and in what quantities. As the main planner, the government establishes trade polices that historically have been very restrictive in allowing foreign companies the opportunity to compete” (Stralser, 2004). China was a planned economy under Mao Zedong’s leadership as he thoughts was mainly equality, where he established nationalization of China’s economy through the control of markets by keeping it free from foreign dominations, price, and production as well as natural and human resources. He also introduced the promotion of egalitarianism and collectivism with little incentives, while individuals’ needs are not being realized. As a
China is much more than just a mere country. It has been through many ups and downs and exciting changes in the Chinese society, from changes of dynasties to establishing a name under the ‘7 wonders of the world’ with its creation of the ‘Great Wall of China’. Its heritage and history for the past thousands of years have made China of what it is today. Hence, with Deng Xiaoping’s widely quoted phrases: “crossing the river by grouping for stones”, “Getting rich is glorious”, and “seek truth from facts, and not from ideology”, how has China develop and grown over the years? How did China attain its current economic prosperity? How did China seek the truth of its economy transition from a planned economy to a market economy over the decades?
“In a planned economy, government controls and determine business ownership, profits, and resource allocation. The theory behind a planned economy is ‘communism’, which suggests that all property is shared equally by the people in a community under the direction of a strong central government. It is an economic system that involves public ownership of businesses. Rather than entrepreneurs, the government decides what products consumers will be offered and in what quantities. As the main planner, the government establishes trade polices that historically have been very restrictive in allowing foreign companies the opportunity to compete” (Stralser, 2004). China was a planned economy under Mao Zedong’s leadership as he thoughts was mainly equality, where he established nationalization of China’s economy through the control of markets by keeping it free from foreign dominations, price, and production as well as natural and human resources. He also introduced the promotion of egalitarianism and collectivism with little incentives, while individuals’ needs are not being realized. As a
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