Dual Circulation: a New Structural Economics view of development

ABSTRACT This paper provides a detailed account of China’s Dual Circulation Development Paradigm and examines its theoretical foundation from the perspective of the New Structural Economics approach. The purpose of this Paradigm is to shift the focus from foreign to domestic circulation as the major driving force for China’s sustainable development, and to emphasize the importance of a positive reciprocal relationship between domestic and international economic circulations. This paper argues that aim of the Paradigm is to facilitate a qualitative leap in industrial upgrading to achieve both a higher-quality domestic circulation and a higher-level of international circulation. By explaining the development thinking from the Chinese policy-makers’ perspective, this paper also casts light on growth and development issues facing other countries.