Deng Xiaoping dies during the reform transition

The law regulated insurers and contracts as financial services expanded. Market insurance diversified risk but was accessible unevenly by income, place and employment.

The 1996-2000 plan translated party priorities into a state program for growth and structural adjustment. Planning continued alongside markets, though aggregate targets could obscure unequal effects...

Further tariff reductions prepared firms for greater international competition. Lower costs and wider choice came with pressure on less productive firms; the state sequenced trade opening as a...

The move facilitated current international payments without opening the capital account. It advanced trade integration while preserving tools to manage cross-border finance and protect policy...

Tighter credit and investment controls lowered inflation while output continued to expand. Stabilization showed the state’s steering capacity, but financial restraint affected employment and local...

The handover restored Chinese sovereignty over a major financial and trading center under “one country, two systems.” Hong Kong deepened its role in mainland investment and export networks, linking...

After Thailand floated the baht, regional financial systems came under pressure. China maintained currency stability rather than devaluing, seeking to avoid a regional spiral and revealing the unequal...

The decision sought a basic pension system combining social pooling and individual accounts as work-unit welfare weakened. Coverage and funding varied locally, leaving gaps between secure workers,...

The congress endorsed reforming state ownership and management, summarized as “grasp the large, let go of the small.” Strategic firms would be consolidated while smaller firms faced transfer or...

Authorities reiterated that they would not devalue the currency. Stability helped limit regional competitive devaluation but required domestic adjustment and capital controls.