ABSTRACT
The two most profound analyses of capitalism's contradictory character are those of Adam Smith and Karl Marx. If we compare capitalism in developed countries today with that of mid-nineteenth century, the progress towards communism is obvious. An alternative, non-mainstream view has argued that inherent tendency of capitalism is towards industrial concentration due to the opportunities for large firms to benefit from economies of scale and scope. Marx and Engels declared that 'the working men have no country' and their clarion call at the end of Manifesto was: 'working men of all countries unite'. Far from being an irrelevance today, both the West and China can together learn from Marx as each of them tries to get to grips with the challenges that global capitalism poses for them individually and collectively. It may only be the approaching 'final hour' which finally forces human beings to grope their way towards the globally cooperative solutions that constitute essence of communism in twenty-first century.
