Chapter Eight. The Market Economy And Regulatory Change

The purpose of a market economy legal system is to maintain market health according to market fundamentals and conditions. The main principles of a market economy legal system are: equality between market entities; independent ownership; freedom of exchange; robust competition; and equality between exchanges. The development of China's market economy laws over the past thirty years can be divided into three stages: the initial stage of reform and opening (1978-1992); the stage of reforms promoting marketization (1993-1996); and the stage in which the rule of law has been under continuous construction (1997-present). China's economic development is inseparable from the independent operation of the market, but it is also inseparable from management and regulation by the government. Therefore, in many respects, economic law uses macro-level controls to regulate the economy, emphasizing the government's role in leading and interfering in the economy in order to optimize the allocation of resources. Keywords: Chinese economy; economic laws; market economy legal system; regulatory change