Introduction

Abstract

China has undergone an impressive and spectacular structural transformation of its economy since 1978 when various market reforms were progressively introduced. After an initial convergence of real income, income per capita between the provinces has widened since 1993; but the number of people in poverty declined from 250 million to 34 million between 1978 and 1999 (World Bank, 2002; see also Chapter 9). This impressive growth should be seen in historical context. For hundreds of years, per capita GDP in China was stagnant. Maddison, in his book The World Economy: Historical Statistics (2003), has compiled historical data from 1500 to 2001 for a range of countries, including China.