China's transition to a market economy has propelled its remarkable economic growth since the late 1970s. In this book, Nicholas R. Lardy, one of the world's foremost experts on the Chinese economy, traces the increasing role of market forces and refutes the widely advanced argument that Chinese economic progress rests on the government's control of the economy's "commanding heights." In another challenge to conventional wisdom, Lardy finds little evidence that the decade of the leadership of former President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao (2003–13) dramatically increased the role and importance of state-owned firms, as many people argue. This book offers powerfully persuasive evidence that the major sources of China's growth in the future will be similarly market rather than state-driven, with private firms providing the major source of economic growth, the sole source of job creation, and the major contributor to China's still growing role as a global trader. Lardy does, however, call on China to deregulate and increase competition in those portions of the economy where state firms remain protected, especially in energy and finance.

China's extraordinarily rapid economic growth since 1978, driven by market-oriented reforms, has set world records and continued unabated, despite predictions of an inevitable slowdown. In The State Strikes Back: The End of Economic Reform in China?, renowned China scholar Nicholas R. Lardy argues that China's future growth prospects could be equally bright but are shadowed by the specter of resurgent state dominance, which has begun to diminish the vital role of the market and private firms in China's economy. Lardy's book arrives in timely fashion as a sequel to his pathbreaking Markets over Mao: The Rise of Private Business in China, published by PIIE in 2014. This book mobilizes new data to trace how President Xi Jinping has consistently championed state-owned or controlled enterprises, encouraging local political leaders and financial institutions to prop up ailing, underperforming companies that are a drag on China's potential. As with his previous book, Lardy's perspective departs from conventional wisdom, especially in its contention that China could achieve a high growth rate for the next two decades—if it reverses course and returns to the path of market-oriented reforms.

Praise for MAO, MARX & THE MARKET "This is a gripping tale from start to finish, an extraordinary adventure told by a brilliant and idealistic businessman confronted by political disloyalty and chicanery on an epic scale. LeBaron tells his story with a punch, but his basic instincts of morality and decency shine throughout." --Peter L. Bernstein, President, Peter L. Bernstein, Inc., author of The Power of Gold: The History of an Obsession "An insight-packed thriller summarizing a brilliant contrarian investor s adventures in the two great dramas of our era Russia and China; chock-full of pithy lessons relevant for investors and observers alike." --Graham Allison, Director, Robert and Renee Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University "Dean LeBaron s book on his adventures in Russia and China is a fun read. I recommend it to anyone taking their first or second or third visit to either country for business or pleasure. LeBaron brings out the personal warmth of these countries in terms of their individuals, as well as the obvious complexities of dealing with them." --David Gill, Board Member of several companies involved with Russia, Retired International Finance Corporation Official "This is the fascinating story of Dean LeBaron in his quest to participate right from the start in the opening of China and Russia following the demise of their socialist/ communist regimes. It is the best account of what happened in the emerging market world in the nineties." --Marc Faber, Editor, The Gloom Boom & Doom Report,Managing Director, Marc Faber Limited "Adventure capitalist Dean LeBaron is the Indiana Jones of finance. Follow his escapades in emerging markets and get an insider s view of the birth of capitalism in Russia and China. You ll be amused, entertained, and instructed. Mao, Marx & the Market provides a fascinating insider s view of the creation of market economies with all their attendant travails. A must read." --Bill Miller, CFA, Chief Executive Officer, Legg Mason Funds Management, Inc.

'Dr Donghyun Park is a prominent and rare economist in Asia who can combine frontline economic theories, lively data, and real-time policy analyses. Capitalism in the 21st Century is a masterful book by Dr Park, providing a comprehensive understanding of heterogenous trajectories of economies around the globe and more fundamental mechanisms of the modern capitalistic system. This is a 'must-read' for those who are interested in comparative economic systems, global economy, and international development.'Yasuyuki SawadaChief Economist, Asian Development BankProfessor of Economics, University of Tokyo'Donghyun Park makes clear that capitalism gets a bad rap, in large part because of too much emphasis on capital as in financial engineering, and too much emphasis on capitals as in government protectionism. Park argues a compelling case that genuine capitalism, which is about entrepreneurship, is necessary to solve the big problems most people face around the globe.'Adam S PosenPresident, Peterson Institute of International EconomicsGlobal capitalism is currently suffering from an unmistakable malaise, epitomized by wide and growing inequality that is eroding popular support for capitalism. Such anti-capitalist sentiment, coupled with a growing anti-globalization mood, delivered Brexit in a UK referendum and swept Donald Trump to the US presidency. In Capitalism in the 21st Century, internationally well-regarded economist Dr Donghyun Park articulately explains why more capitalism is needed to tackle global problems such as climate change and inhumane poverty. While defending capitalism against its unfair demonization, the author makes a positive case for entrepreneurial capitalism, which creates wealth and jobs as well as drives human progress. According to the author, reforming the financial industry, which has become a self-serving leviathan, and more fundamentally, tweaking the economic role of the government, which stifles growth-promoting entrepreneurship, are critical to restoring the vitality of capitalism. The book is explicitly written in such a way that the general reader without any background in economics or finance can easily understand it.Related Link(s)

Drawing on decades of research and teaching on China, Robin Porter presents a nuanced view of the country's modern evolution and its myriad historical influences. Porter has a wealth of practical experience with China, having first visited the country during the Cultural Revolution and having worked as an editor at the Xinhua News Agency during the 1970s. In this volume, he explicitly accounts for the factors that gave rise to China's current trends and behaviors, offering both scholars and newcomers a rich portrait of an unpredictable though formidable world power.Porter begins with China's social and political development from earliest times to the modern period. He concludes with the country today, then steps back to assess the events that have most determined China's evolution. He concentrates on the role played by politics and culture in conditioning every aspect of Chinese life. His analysis considers the country's Confucian heritage, orthodoxy in ideology and law, political command structures, technological innovation, enterprise management, public policy and private goals, and the prospects for democracy.With personal insight and privileged perspective, Porter clarifies a number of myths and mysteries about modern China and evaluates the implications of its expansion in the balance of world power. He provides crucial context for the China dimension that has become so central to discussions of national and international policy.

This book will be provocative reading for anyone concerned with China and the world economy.

Andrew Wedemen argues that China succeeded in moving from a Maoist command economy to a market economy because the central government failed to prevent local governments from forcing prices to market levels. Having partially decontrolled the economy in the early 1980s, economic reformers baulked at price reform, opting instead for a hybrid system wherein commodities had two prices, one fixed and one floating. Depressed fixed prices led to 'resource wars', as localities battled each other for control over undervalued commodities while inflated consumer goods prices fuelled a headlong investment boom that saturated markets and led to the erection of import barriers. Although local rent seeking and protectionism appeared to carve up the economy, in reality they had not only pushed prices to market levels and cleared the way for sweeping reforms in the 1980s, they had also pushed China past the 'pitfalls' of reform that entrapped other socialist economies.