opportunities posed by China will continue to change over time. Yet very little research has been conducted on the economic forces … that spur the transformation of China’s economic structure. We present a model of the forces underpinning China’s evolving … economy, investigating the determinants of China’s progression through key economic stages, including the initial transition …

during China’s reform between 1988 and 2002. We pay special attention to the changing role of sorting by ability versus … budget-constraint effects as China’s education policy has changed from one in which the bulk of direct costs are paid by …