Product Description

This comprehensive overview of the modern Chinese economy by a noted expert on China's economic development offers a quality and breadth of coverage not found in any other English-language text. In The Chinese Economy, Barry Naughton provides both an engaging, broadly focused introduction to China's economy since 1949 and original insights based on his own extensive research. The book will be an essential resource for students, teachers, scholars, business people, and policymakers. It is suitable for classroom use for undergraduate or graduate courses.

After presenting background material on the pre-1949 economy and the industrialization, reform, and market transition that have taken place since, the book examines different aspects of the modern Chinese economy. It analyzes patterns of growth and development, including population growth and the one-child family policy; the rural economy, including agriculture and rural industrialization; industrial and technological development in urban areas; international trade and foreign investment; macroeconomic trends and cycles and the financial system; and the largely unaddressed problems of environmental quality and the sustainability of growth.

The text is notable also for placing China's economy in interesting comparative contexts, discussing it in relation to other transitional or developing economies and to such advanced industrial countries as the United States and Japan. It provides both a broad historical and macro perspective as well as a focused examination of the actual workings of China's complex and dynamic economic development. Interest in the Chinese economy will only grow as China becomes an increasingly important player on the world's stage. This book will be the standard reference for understanding and teaching about the next economic superpower.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9959 in Books
• Published on: 2007-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 504 pages

Review
"Authored by a leading specialist on the Chinese economy, Barry Naughton's book provides a lucid, systematic, and insightful view of China's road to becoming a 'powerhouse of the global economy' as well as of the challenges ahead in sustaining past accomplishments. Designed primarily as a textbook, its comprehensive coverage and sophisticated analysis assure that it will become a valuable and much-used resource for anyone seeking an understanding of China's economy."
--Steven M. Goldstein, Sophia Smith Professor of Government, Smith College

"Barry Naughton is one of the top experts on China's economy, and there's no one who could have done a better job in writing a book like this. I have nothing but praise for the book, which fills a pressing need for a comprehensive textbook introducing students to the recent history, nature, and likely immediate prospects for China's economy."
--Louis Putterman, Professor of Economics, Brown University

"In this masterful overview and analysis of the Chinese economy, Barry Naughton achieves such depth and breadth that it is impossible to identify only one major contribution. In effortless prose he describes the status of every major parameter of the sprawling economy and offers a treasure trove of empirical data drawn from the most current primary sources. In addition, Naughton systematically explores how the experiences of both the imperial and socialist pasts shape contemporary conditions and raises provocative questions about China's ability to sustain growth rates that already equal or surpass those of postwar Japan. Prepared as a textbook, The Chinese Economy has the intellectual weight and staying power of a major monograph."
--Deborah Davis, Professor of Sociology, Yale University

About the Author
Barry Naughton is Professor of Chinese Economy and Sokwanlok Chair of Chinese International Affairs at the University of California, San Diego. He is the author of Growing Out of the Plan: Chinese Economic Reform, 1978-1993.

Customer Reviews

Definitive Overview of Chinese Growth
Having read countless articles and books on China, Naughton stands out as the leader on the Chinese economy. This book is structured brilliantly, providing novices and experts alike with easy access to valuable information.

I recommend this to anyone with any interest in understanding how China has grown into a leader in today's economy.

The Chinese economy demystified
China's economic development since 1978 has baffled and surprised the world. Other developing economies may regard China with envy but if they are contemplating copying China's model of development, help is at hand. They just need to read Naughton's book.

China's three decade of economic development has been called many things, such as groping stones while crossing the river, three steps forward and two back, bird cage economics, transition from command to market, amazing, miraculous and more. The author has organized the historical date in a way easy to comprehend and coupled with explanations that are lucid and easy to follow.

Textbook conjures up the image of a big snore, but not this one. This one will become essential reference book dogeared by frequent use.

Required reading for anyone who is serious about China
An excellent book which is rare for being highly readable, insightful, and well supported. Those who know China will find specific information and analysis which explains why the country operates in the way that it does. Those who don't know China will learn about the country without the confusion that results from the writings of casual observers.

The only specific weakness in the book is Dr. Naughton's assessment of modern industrial policy, which is incomplete and off-track. That aspect is simply an omission and does little to detract from the overall value of his work.