ABSTRACT
China has been the most dynamic trading nation in the world for two decades since 1978, when it started economic reforms. China’s foreign trade experienced a phenomenal growth in volume. A visit to any department store in an industrialized country will reveal that many of today’s consumer goods are made in China. In 1978 China’s exports and imports accounted for only 10 percent of GDP – one of the lowest nations in the world. Since then China’s trade has surged to 75 percent of GDP. As shown in Table 1.1, trade volume increased 56-fold in 26 years, from $21 billion in 1978 to $1,155 billion in 2004. As a result China has become the world’s third largest trading nation, accounting for 6.5 percent of world exports. It is virtually certain that China will become even more important in the future because of its size, dynamic economic growth, and continuing policy reforms.
