ABSTRACT
This Chapter discusses non-economic elements – administrative parameters and their impact on rural market development. Skinner's perception of administrative factors and their impact on rural markets is based on a cyclical theory of policy change. He argues administrative intervention played a crucial role in rural market development during Mao's period which witnessed the domination of an anti-market ideology and the implementation of radical policies such as collectivisation. The chapter demonstrates that administrative aspects – despite being weakened during the reform era – are still crucial in understanding China's socioeconomic development. It exposes the limitations of Skinner's overemphasis on economic and transport factors. The creation of market places using administrative principles is an important factor that dictates China's rural development. Since Mao's era, the administrative hierarchy has overridden the economic one in China. The imposition of market fees is another reason for people peddling at spots other than rural markets. Market fees include an administrative charge and rent.
