The Chinese Economy 1870 1949

An economic history of China's last imperial dynasty and through the first half of the 20th century, originally published in The Cambridge History of China, v.11 and v.12, 1980 and 1983 respectively. Feuerwerker (U. of Michigan) summarizes the states of agriculture and industry in the Ch'ing Empire, and economic trends in the Republic, including fo

The development of China’s economy has been an enigma to Western historians. Was it centuries of stagnation followed by collapse or was it a process of steady development, reaching a high point by the eighteenth century? What is certain is that its economic growth never developed into a full industrial revolution and was overtaken by the West.

As the first volume of a two-volume set on Chinese economic history, this book investigates Chinese economic development between 1912 and 1949 and unravels the overall level during that time. From the perspective of development economics, the two-volume set studies the economic history and development of China since 1912, with a focus on the quantitative analysis of economic activities. Comprised of two core parts, this first volume, centering on the period of the Republic of China, first describes the historical process and characteristics of the economy at different stages and then looks into the momentum and inner logic that underpin the economic development. The former part covers issues of agriculture, industry, population, and labour force, urbanization, price changes, people’s consumption and living standard, regional difference, etc. The latter part includes discussions on natural and human resources, capital formation and technological progress, the role of government and finance, international trade, and foreign capital. This title will be an interesting read for scholars and students working on Chinese economic history, the Chinese economy, and modern Chinese society.

This thoroughly researched and clearly written compendium of available statistical information on China provides reliable information, careful explanations, useful guides to further research, and a full bibliography. An exhaustive compilation of national and provincial statistics on mainland China from 1949 to 1959, this book covers every facet of the Communist Chinese economy and presents the most comprehensive coverage available of statistical data on China from this period. Based on data obtained directly from Chinese sources, this book is the first attempt to provide Western readers with a reliable reference on the economy of mainland China. Nai-Ruenn Chen thoroughly and systematically examines each area of the economy and provides an authoritative guide to the terminology, classification, and method of collecting and listing data presented in the ample tables included in the book. Except in cases where missing information could be filled by simple arithmetic means or from descriptions by the Chinese themselves, no data was synthesized by inferential methods and no non-Chinese estimates were used. Rather Chen lists formulae for achieving indices for statistical measurement, defines geographical, economic, and administrative units of measurement, and explains the development of statistical procedures that have evolved in China. This volume is divided into eleven sections: area and population; national income; capital formation and related estimates; industry; agriculture; transportation and communication; trade; prices; living standards; public finance, credit, and foreign exchange rates; and employment, labor productivity, and wages. Each section consists of two parts: one containing the explanatory text, and the other, statistical tables grouped largely according to Chinese classifications. Chinese Economic Statistics in the Maoist Era: 1949-1965 is indispensable to anyone studying China, a valuable source for students of economic develo

Reviews economic development and stasis in the final decades of the Manchu dynasty

First published in 1957. This volume provides a broad survey of economic progress in China from 1949 to 1952 and covers the historical background, China's economic system, industralisation and planning, the first Five Year Plan in industry, agriculture, transport, commerce and finance, education and health and foreign trade. The work is supplemented with an extensive bibliography, maps and statistical tables.

The Chinese economy has been the subject of substantial research in recent years in the United States and abroad. Much has been made of significant strides toward industrial development since the Communist takeover. But it is impossible to understand what has been achieved unless one measures these gains against economic events in the pre-Communist period. This book offers a record of China's industrialization, with its comprehensive statistical analysis of the industrial growth of pre-Communist China.Industrial Development in Pre-Communist China covers the period from 1912 to 1949 and deals with all of China irrespective of changes in political boundaries. For purposes of this study, ""industrial production"" includes mining, metallurgy, manufacturing, and fuel and power; the construction industry is not included. Chang finds that the average annual rate of growth of the modern industrial sector during the pre-World War I period was about 8 or 9 percent, including Manchuria. During the period from 1928 to 1936, under the Nanking Government, political unification was achieved. Peace and order were maintained and the necessary foundations for economic transformation in the post-World War II period were established.At the time of its original publication in 1969, Chang's work represented an important first step toward a comprehensive, quantitative study of the history of China's industrialization and a benchmark against which the Communist achievement can be measured, this work forces reconsideration of widely held views on China's economic and industrial development. An important reference for the study of Chinese history and economics, especially for the Republican period, Chang's work is of continuing value to all Sinologists and to specialists in economic development and economic history.