Trade has been a very significant factor of the People's Republic of China's economy. In the twenty-five years that followed the founding of the Republic in 1949, China's trade institutions developed into a partially modern but somewhat inefficient system. The drive to modernize the economy that began in 1978 required a sharp acceleration in commodity flows and greatly improved efficiency in economic transactions. In the ensuing years economic reforms were adopted by the government to develop a "socialist planned commodity economy". This type of economy combined central planning with market mechanisms. The changes resulted in the decentralization and expansion of domestic and foreign trade institutions, as well as a greatly enlarged role for free markets in the distribution of goods, and a prominent role for foreign trade and investment in economic development.
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