Spatial Aspects of Development in China the Motor Vehicle Industry, 1956-1985

The spatial pattern of development in China's motor vehicle industry differs from that expected on the basis of both the technological characteristics of vehicle production and the historical experiences of other large countries. Distortions in the locations and sizes of plants and in the extent of specialization resulted primarily from distinctive features of the prereform planning system and, in particular, from the highly compartmentalized structure of the planning organization. Early post-Mao reforms addressed some of the more conspicuous and costly distortions; however, recent evidence suggests persistence of the prereform spatial pattern.