A market economy based on central planning
A decision on economic restructuring adopted unanimously by the 12th CPC Central Committee at its third plenary session in October 1984 defined China’s socialist economy as a market economy based on central planning and public ownership. Such an economy differs from a full market economy in that it is a socialist economic system based on public ownership of the means of production and relies on planning, as well as market mechanisms, to regulate the production and exchange of goods. The decision pointed out that full development of a market-oriented economy was an inevitable step in China’s social and economic development and a prerequisite for economic modernization. It added that central planning and a focus on market mechanisms and development of a market economy were not mutually exclusive, but could be mutually complementary, and that it was wrong to pit one against the other. This new understanding replaced a previous formula that assigned central planning a leading role and market mechanisms a supporting role. The change represented a clear departure from the traditional dichotomy of planned economy versus market economy and a breakthrough in socialist economic theory. It significantly enriched socialist economics and scientific socialism, expanded the realms of these theories, and provided a solid theoretical foundation and an overarching guiding framework for China’s economic restructuring. It mapped the future direction for economic restructuring, marked an important step towards building a market economy, and paved the way for developing a theory of socialist market economy.
The 13th CPC National Congress defined the new socialist market economy system based on central planning as one that integrates the role of planning and that of the market, with the government regulating the market and businesses responding to market signals. Guided by this new approach, restructuring gathered new momentum.
有計劃的商品經濟
1984年10月，黨的十二屆三中全會一致通過《中共中央關于經濟體制改革的決定》，明確提出“社會主義經濟是在公有制基礎上的有計劃的商品經濟”。有計劃的商品經濟相對于完全由市場調節的經濟而言，即在生產資料公有制基礎上，自覺運用和依據價值規律，對商品生產和交換進行計劃調節的社會主義經濟體制。決定還指出，“商品經濟的充分發展，是社會經濟發展的不可逾越的階段，是實現我國經濟現代化的必要條件”，“實行計劃經濟同運用價值規律、發展商品經濟，不是互相排斥的，而是統一的，把二者對立起來是錯誤的”。這一提法改變了以往“計劃經濟為主，市場調節為輔”的表述，表明中國共產黨改變了以往在經濟建設中將計劃經濟同商品經濟對立起來的傳統認識，是對傳統社會主義經濟理論的重大突破，極大地豐富和發展了社會主義政治經濟學和科學社會主義，為中國的經濟體制改革提供了科學的理論依據和總的指導思想，構成經濟體制改革綱領的理論支柱。這一論斷指明了中國當時階段經濟體制改革的方向，是國家經濟建設從以往的計劃經濟向市場經濟邁出的關鍵一步，為日后社會主義市場經濟理論的提出做了鋪墊。
此后，黨的十三大把社會主義有計劃商品經濟的新體制界定為計劃和市場內在統一的體制，并提出“國家調節市場，市場引導企業”的經濟運行模式，中國經濟體制改革進一步走向深入。
