ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses a question: Can market socialism, a market-based form of socialism within the political context of one-party communist rule become a competitive and efficient economy like market capitalism? A rethinking of socialism based on our empirical observation of the development of market socialism in China and other Asian countries will not only help to address these questions but also provide a better understanding of the practical and theoretical implications of market socialism for the future of these East and Southeast Asian countries. The chapter attempts to find a feasible solution to the problems by investigating these problems, providing a blueprint of a feasible reform plan in the political context of a socialist state, and designing an effective mechanisms to carry out this reform plan in China and other market socialist countries. Market reforms in market socialism have improved the property rights relationship by implementing the separation of ownership and control, particularly defining the principal-agent relationship more clearly.
