The Internationalisation of the Chinese Economy: Empirical Evidence

As discussed in the last chapter, the internationalisation of the Chinese state has been brought about by economic reforms in China. This process of transformation is ongoing and intensifying with China’s membership in the World Trade Organisation. At a more tangible level, it is often argued that China has been increasingly integrated into the global economy since the launch of economic reforms (World Bank 1997a, Lardy 2002). Controversies do remain as to how deep or shallow China’s integration has been and the nature of China’s current trade regimes and economic system (Shirk 1994, Lardy 1998, Naughton 2000). China’s commitment to embracing accelerated globalisation is often subject to question and contending interpretations.1 Interestingly, these controversies confirm, rather than challenge, a simple fact: that is, China’s economic integration into the global economy is unprecedented.