'Demystifying the Chinese Economy' is one of the very few books available in the English language that explains the economics of the post-1978 reform and opening up from a Chinese rather than eurocentric perspective. As one of the top economists in China, and someone with the ear of the top government leadership, Lin has a deep insight into China's economic strategy and history.
Not assuming detailed knowledge of economic vocabulary, Lin gives clear and useful explanations of such phenomena as China's focus on light, labour-intensive industry from the late 70s onwards; the transformation of people's communes via the household responsibility system; the economic rise of the 'East Asian miracle' states; the emergence of far-reaching corruption in the 80s; rising inequality and how to resolve it; the reform of the state-owned enterprises; and how China is transforming its 'endowment structure' in the direction of becoming a high-technology economy.
Pretty much essential reading for those interested in the subject matter.
A lot of information on each page. Your brain will either get hooked in or will tire out really quickly. Not recommended for people who aren't familiar with Economics as a subject. If you're in that camp, look at China Shakes the World instead.. it may be a more entertaining option. This book is not 'accessible' by any means, but it's a god-like compilation of information by a very credible author (former Chief Economist at the World Bank). He understands the nuances of Chinese culture and history, and ties that into a very wholesome look at the Chinese economy.
Author, Justin Yifu Lin, is the Senior Vice President and Chief Economist of the World Bank. He writes from an economist perspective. He gets into macroeconomics & microeconomics more than the average reader is going to be interested in.
Part I (Chapter 1-3): explaining why the West rules after industrial revolution. Lin's explanation is that "Keju", the public servant examination in China for thousands of years, was designed to be history & ethics focused instead of math/science focused. As a result, the institutional bias against scientific "trial and error" methods undermined China's lead over the rest of the world after industrial revolution.
Part II (Chapter 4, 5, 14): explaining why the gradual economic reformation found in East Asian countries and in mainland China is better than the shock doctrine advocated by and implemented by the world bank and Chicago boys in former USSR constituents. Not sure what is current academia's view of Lin's explanation, but it does make sense to me, especially with the focus on "inherent viability" of SOEs. Having read Naomi Klein's shock doctrine, which, I will say, is very ideological & emotional, it's good to see Lin's perspective as neutral, subjective, and theory based.
Part III (Chapter 6-13): that's the part which Lin tried to "demystify the Chinese Economy". From his account of China's economic history for the last three decades, I do find CCP, with regard to its economic policy, is very scientific, results driven, and flexible. He talks about current challenges faced by China's economy, including the inability to borrow/raise money as small-medium business owners and further revitalize SOEs operation efficiency, which are not uncommon and you can find those discussions in every major consultancy's report or economists' talks. His insights on the importance of rural area in absorbing the shock following financial meltdown in 2008 coincides with Wen Tiejun, another reputable economics scholar in China.
This book features quite a lot technical economic concepts. Most were novel to me but not difficult to wrap my head around. It’s definitely a fascinating insight into China’s past, present, and future, written in an objective manner.
I have read many economic books but non have explain the cause and effect relationship between the government, natural endowment of the country and the economic theory as well as this book. It also give detailed example on why some seemingly great idea failed