The Chinese economy 1911-1948 - Book Report/Review Example

The Chinese economy 1911-1948 According to Barry Naughton’s ‘The Chinese economy’ chapter two, and Albert Feuerwerker’s ‘The Chinese economy 1870-1949’, the Chinese economy experienced random changes in the period 1911-1948. The period between 1912 and 1937, was the beginning of industrial development with growth of modern transport and communication means. This was after the collapse of the Qing dynasty and the 1911 revolution. In the period 1912-1937, the economy of China improved steadily due to the rapid pace of industrialization experienced.

There were two distinct industrialization patterns noted during this period, “Treaty Port Industrialization” and “Manchurian Industrialization”. Treaty Port Industrialization was the dominant industrialization pattern inside the Great Wall of China. This pattern concentrated on light, consumer-goods industries such as textile and food industries. It was started by foreigners but the Chinese quickly started deploying the same pattern. Manchurian Industrialization emerged in Manchuria where investment was carried out mainly by the Japanese Government and quasi-official affiliates of the Japanese government.

In this pattern, development focused mainly on heavy roads and railroads. The Manchurian industry accounted for a small part of the total output but its value added was much bigger since heavy industries are of greater importance with their higher ratio of net to gross output. The growth of modern sector in 1920s and 1930s had positive impacts on the traditional sectors. There was increased demand from modern sectors, growing cities and increasing trade. The was positive growth on most traditional sectors in the period between 1914 and 1936.

There was a significant rise in the GDP per capita over the period. The society during this period, was laying basis for future development. The level of literacy gradually increased during this period, with a large number of Chinese students going abroad to further their studies. Although industrialization had laid a foundation for future progress; it was yet to basically change the overall structure of the Chinese economy. According to Barry Naughton’s ‘The Chinese economy’ chapter two, and Albert Feuerwerker’s ‘The Chinese economy 1870-1949’, the period between 1937 and 1949 was a very crucial period in the history of Chinese economy.

In 1937, the Japanese invaded proper China; this was marked by the Marco Polo incident outside Beijing. This incident initiated a period of war that lasted up to 1949. War caused mass suffering to the people and serious damages to the economy. In 1940s, a Japan-centered East Asian economic system came into existence until the defeat of Japan in the pacific war in 1949 with China withdrawing from East Asian economy at that time. The war prompted the nationalist government to retreat into the interior of China.

Due to war pressure, there was an increase in state intervention of the economy. In the late 1940s, the Chinese economy was run by the state. The nationalist government while trying to pay for the war, they printed more money leading to acceleration of inflation in the late 1940s. Severe macroeconomic imbalances threated to cripple the economy until the state was taken over by the communist government after 1949. In my view, the period between 1911 and 1948 represented the initial growth of the Chinese economy which was altered by the war.

The period between 1911 and 1936 represented a period of gradual development in all sectors leading to a rise in the economy. The period between 1937 and 1948 represents a period of sudden fall of the Chinese the economy due to the war.Work CitedNaughton, Barry. The Chinese Economy: Transitions and Growth. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2007. Print.Feuerwerker, Albert. The Chinese Economy, 1870-1949. Ann Arbor, Mich: Center for Chinese Studies, Univ. of Michigan, 1995. Print.