The Review of Economics and Statistics Vol. 51 No. 3 1969
Retail Price Index in the Peoples' Republic of China
Abstract
T HERE is fair agreement among scholars familiar with the economy of the Peoples' Republic of China (China) that there is stability in the retail price index. It is admitted that this index is biased downward because there were years of high black-market prices. However, they say that such issues are not central because (1) the basic necessities were available and rationed at stable prices; (2) the index is biased downward when prices are rising, and biased upward when prices are falling.' The contention of these scholars is both serious and important. It makes a very major difference how we look at the performance of the Chinese economy. Below in table 11 the price indices are presented which represent Chinese official claims. Perkins has attempted to verify the weighting system of the retail price index by reconstructing the index, and he states:
- DOI
- 10.2307/1926565
- Volume
- 51
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 309
- Sources
- openalex crossref