Handling the Core Issue of the Relationship between the Government and the Market

Handling the relationship between the government and the market is the core issue of economic system reform. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping has published a series of important expositions on the relationship between the government and the market, providing fundamental guidance for correctly handling this relationship and thereby advancing comprehensive deepening of reform. The "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Promoting Chinese-Path Modernization" (hereinafter referred to as the "Decision") adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, centering on the core issue of handling the relationship between the government and the market, places the construction of a high-level socialist market economy system in a prominent position, makes arrangements for key areas and crucial links of economic system reform, and clearly emphasizes "focusing on building a high-level socialist market economy system, fully leveraging the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, and better leveraging the role of the government." This is the latest cognitive achievement and important theoretical innovation concerning handling the relationship between the government and the market, formed through profoundly summarizing China's reform and opening up, especially the magnificent practical process of comprehensively deepening reform since the New Era, and is an important component of Xi Jinping's economic thought. Paying attention to leveraging the leading role of economic system reform and better understanding and handling the relationship between the government and the market is of great significance for further comprehensively deepening reform and comprehensively building a modern socialist country.

处理好政府和市场关系是经济体制改革的核心问题。党的十八大以来，习近平总书记围绕政府和市场关系发表了一系列重要论述，为正确处理好政府和市场关系进而推进全面深化改革提供了根本遵循。党的二十届三中全会通过的《中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的决定》（以下简称《决定》）围绕处理好政府和市场关系这个核心问题，把构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制摆在突出位置，对经济体制改革重点领域和关键环节作出部署，明确强调“聚焦构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，更好发挥政府作用”。这是深刻总结我国改革开放，特别是新时代以来全面深化改革波澜壮阔的实践历程而形成的关于处理好政府和市场关系的最新认识成果和重要理论创新，是习近平经济思想的重要内容。注重发挥经济体制改革牵引作用，更好认识与处理政府和市场关系，对进一步全面深化改革、全面建设社会主义现代化国家具有重大意义。

Striving to Solve a Worldwide Problem in Economics in Practice

努力在实践中破解经济学上的世界性难题

How to handle the relationship between the government and the market, and how to make the "visible hand" and the "invisible hand" work together in synergy, can be called a worldwide problem in economics. Western economics usually regards "government-market" as a binary opposition. An important reason for the various governance disorders in Western countries in today's world lies in the confusion of the relationship between the government and the market. Practice shows that a successful market economy system cannot be simply summarized by the "size and strength" of the government and the market. Blindly applying the Western economic analytical framework of "government-market" to guide China's economic development practice often leads to wrong policy choices.

如何处理好政府和市场关系，如何让“看得见的手”和“看不见的手”协同发力，堪称经济学上的世界性难题。西方经济学通常把“政府—市场”看作是二元对立的，当今世界西方国家出现种种治理乱象的一个重要原因就在于政府和市场关系的错乱。实践表明，成功的市场经济体制并不能简单用政府和市场“大小强弱”来概括，盲目将西方经济学关于“政府—市场”分析框架用于指导我国经济发展实践，往往会导致错误的政策选择。

In the over 40 years of theoretical and practical innovation since reform and opening up, China's socialist market economy system has continuously developed, and our Party's understanding of the relationship between the government and the market has been constantly deepened. In 1984, the "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Economic System Reform" adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 12th Central Committee proposed "to break through the traditional concept of opposing the planned economy to the commodity economy." Comrade Deng Xiaoping commented that it "wrote a first draft of political economy, a political economy combining the basic principles of Marxism with China's socialist practice." The 14th National Congress of the CPC proposed that the goal of China's economic system reform was to establish a socialist market economy system. The 15th National Congress of the CPC proposed "enabling the market to play a fundamental role in resource allocation under national macroeconomic regulation," the 16th National Congress proposed "enabling the market to play a fundamental role in resource allocation to a greater extent," the 17th National Congress proposed "better enabling the market to play a fundamental role in resource allocation institutionally," and the 18th National Congress proposed "enabling the market to play a fundamental role in resource allocation to a greater extent and in a wider scope." The Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee proposed "enabling the market to play a decisive role in resource allocation and better leveraging the role of the government," which was a new development in the goal and connotation of economic system reform in both theory and practice. The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee regarded public ownership as the mainstay with diverse forms of ownership developing together, distribution according to work as the mainstay with multiple modes of distribution coexisting, and the socialist market economy system as the basic socialist economic system.

在改革开放40多年的理论创新和实践创新中，我国社会主义市场经济体制不断发展，我们党对政府和市场关系的认识不断深化。1984年，党的十二届三中全会通过的《中共中央关于经济体制改革的决定》提出“要突破把计划经济同商品经济对立起来的传统观念”。邓小平同志评价说，“写出了一个政治经济学的初稿，是马克思主义基本原理和中国社会主义实践相结合的政治经济学”。党的十四大提出我国经济体制改革的目标是建立社会主义市场经济体制。党的十五大提出“使市场在国家宏观调控下对资源配置起基础性作用”，党的十六大提出“在更大程度上发挥市场在资源配置中的基础性作用”，党的十七大提出“从制度上更好发挥市场在资源配置中的基础性作用”，党的十八大提出“更大程度更广范围发挥市场在资源配置中的基础性作用”。党的十八届三中全会提出“使市场在资源配置中起决定性作用和更好发挥政府作用”，这是在理论和实践上对经济体制改革目标和内涵的新发展。党的十九届四中全会将公有制为主体、多种所有制经济共同发展，按劳分配为主体、多种分配方式并存，社会主义市场经济体制等作为社会主义基本经济制度。

The "Decision" places the construction of a high-level socialist market economy system in a prominent position. On the basis of emphasizing "fully leveraging the decisive role of the market in resource allocation and better leveraging the role of the government," it further proposes "achieving optimization of resource allocation efficiency and maximization of benefits, being both 'able to let go and enliven' and 'able to manage and control well'." This elucidates the internal logic of better combining the government and the market, represents a theoretical innovation and expansion in understanding the relationship between the government and the market, further deepens our Party's understanding of the relationship between the government and the market and the laws of the socialist market economy, enriches and develops the Marxist political economy theory concerning the market economy, and provides theoretical support for the healthy development of the socialist market economy.

《决定》把构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制摆在突出位置，在强调“充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，更好发挥政府作用”基础上，进一步提出“实现资源配置效率最优化和效益最大化，既‘放得活’又‘管得住’”。这阐明了政府和市场更好结合的内在逻辑，是对政府和市场关系认识的理论创新与拓展，进一步深化了我们党对政府和市场关系、对社会主义市场经济规律的认识，丰富发展了马克思主义政治经济学关于市场经济的理论，为社会主义市场经济的健康发展提供了理论支撑。

General Secretary Xi Jinping has profoundly explained the relationship between the government and the market. He emphasized, "Enabling the market to play a decisive role in resource allocation and better leveraging the role of the government are organically unified, not mutually negating. They cannot be separated or opposed to each other. The decisive role of the market in resource allocation cannot be used to replace or even negate the role of the government, nor can better leveraging the role of the government be used to replace or even negate the decisive role of the market in resource allocation." This tells us that on the issue of the role of the market and the role of the government, we must adhere to dialectics and the "two-point theory." Both the "invisible hand" and the "visible hand" must be used well, striving to form a pattern where the role of the market and the role of the government are organically unified, mutually complementary, mutually coordinated, and mutually reinforcing, promoting sustained and healthy economic and social development.

习近平总书记对政府和市场关系作了深刻阐释，他强调，“使市场在资源配置中起决定性作用和更好发挥政府作用，二者是有机统一的，不是相互否定的，不能把二者割裂开来、对立起来，既不能用市场在资源配置中的决定性作用取代甚至否定政府作用，也不能用更好发挥政府作用取代甚至否定使市场在资源配置中起决定性作用”。这就告诉我们，在市场作用和政府作用的问题上，一定要讲辩证法、两点论，“看不见的手”和“看得见的手”都要用好，努力形成市场作用和政府作用有机统一、相互补充、相互协调、相互促进的格局，推动经济社会持续健康发展。

In the process of promoting the better combination of an enabling government and an effective market, China has successfully explored and formed an effective economic governance framework. We adhere to the leadership of the Party, leverage the Party's core leadership role in overseeing the overall situation and coordinating all parties, build a high-level socialist market economy system, enable the enabling government and the effective market to promote each other and be organically unified, achieve both being "able to let go and enliven" and "able to manage and control well," smooth the national economic cycle, continuously promote the effective allocation of resources by the market at the micro level, appropriate government regulation at the macro level, efficient and fair operation of the market economy system, and the vitality of the basic economic system. Looking further, it is precisely because of the persistent adherence to an enabling government and an effective market that China continuously innovates development concepts and solves development problems, thereby creating development achievements that shock the world. It can be said that without the theoretical breakthrough and practical transcendence regarding the relationship between the government and the market, without the transformation and reconstruction of this relationship, it would be difficult to achieve the tremendous accomplishments in China's economic development.

在推动有为政府和有效市场更好结合的过程中，我国成功探索形成有效的经济治理架构。我们坚持党的领导，发挥党总揽全局、协调各方的领导核心作用，构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，使有为政府和有效市场相互促进、有机统一，实现既“放得活”又“管得住”，畅通国民经济循环，不断推动微观领域市场有效配置资源、宏观领域政府调控有度、市场经济体制高效公平运行、基本经济制度充满生机活力。进一步看，正是始终坚持政府有为、市场有效，我国不断创新发展理念、破解发展难题，从而创造出震撼世界的发展成果。可以说，没有对政府和市场关系的理论突破和实践超越，没有对政府和市场关系的变革与重构，就难以造就我国经济发展的巨大成就。

The over 40 years of reform and opening up have been over 40 years of pioneering exploration regarding the relationship between the government and the market. China has always been based on its national conditions and realities, centering on handling the relationship between the government and the market, continuously advancing the deepening of reform, constantly improving the socialist market economy system, and forging a development path that not only suits China's national conditions but also has worldwide significance, providing a Chinese answer to solving the worldwide problem of the relationship between the government and the market.

改革开放的40多年，是在政府和市场关系上不断作出开拓性探索的40多年。我国始终立足国情实际，围绕处理好政府和市场关系，持续推进改革深化，不断完善社会主义市场经济体制，走出了一条既符合中国国情又具有世界意义的发展道路，为破解政府和市场关系这一世界性难题提供了中国答案。

Providing Strong Impetus and Institutional Guarantee for Chinese-Path Modernization

为中国式现代化提供强大动力和制度保障

To advance Chinese-path modernization, it is necessary to take economic system reform as the lead, correctly handle the relationship between the government and the market, and further comprehensively deepen reform.

推进中国式现代化，必须以经济体制改革为牵引，正确处理好政府和市场关系，进一步全面深化改革。

Overall, handling the relationship between the government and the market well helps to further liberate and develop productive forces and enhance social vitality, promoting better adaptation between relations of production and productive forces, and between the superstructure and the economic base. Advancing Chinese-path modernization and building a modern socialist country inevitably requires coordinating and handling the relationship between the government and the market. It is necessary to both fully leverage the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, utilize market mechanisms such as the law of value, competition, and supply and demand, further remove constraints on the development of productive forces, allow the vitality of all factors of production to burst forth, let all sources of social wealth flow fully, and provide a solid material foundation for Chinese-path modernization; and better leverage the role of the government to remedy market failures, create a good development environment for the effective allocation of resources by the market and the stable and healthy operation of the economy, maintain fair competition order, improve macroeconomic governance, while also regulating income distribution order, maintaining social stability, upholding fairness and justice, solidly promoting common prosperity, and allowing the fruits of development to benefit all the people more and more fairly.

整体上看，处理好政府和市场关系有助于进一步解放和发展生产力、增强社会活力，推动生产关系和生产力、上层建筑和经济基础更好相适应。推进中国式现代化、建设社会主义现代化强国，必然要求统筹处理好政府和市场关系。既要充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，用好价值规律、竞争和供求规律等市场机制，进一步解除对生产力发展的束缚，让一切生产要素的活力竞相迸发，让一切创造社会财富的源泉充分涌流，为中国式现代化提供坚实物质基础；又要更好发挥政府作用，弥补市场失灵，为市场有效配置资源和经济平稳健康运行创造良好发展环境，维护公平竞争秩序，完善宏观经济治理，同时规范收入分配秩序，保持社会稳定、维护公平正义、扎实推进共同富裕，让发展成果更多更公平地惠及全体人民。

The report of the 20th National Congress of the CPC [1]1 The 20th National Congress of the CPC: The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, held in October 2022, which set the strategic direction for the current period. proposed "advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization," expounding the Chinese characteristics, essential requirements, and major principles of Chinese-path modernization, and making strategic deployments for advancing Chinese-path modernization. To implement these strategic deployments and turn the blueprint of Chinese-path modernization into reality, it is necessary to better handle the relationship between the government and the market, further deepen reforms comprehensively, resolutely eliminate institutional and mechanistic obstacles hindering the advancement of Chinese-path modernization, strive to resolve deep-seated institutional and mechanistic barriers and structural contradictions, better stimulate the endogenous driving force and innovation vitality of the whole society, and inject strong impetus and provide institutional guarantees for advancing Chinese-path modernization.

党的二十大报告提出“以中国式现代化全面推进中华民族伟大复兴”，阐述了中国式现代化的中国特色、本质要求、重大原则等，对推进中国式现代化作出战略部署。把这些战略部署落到实处，把中国式现代化蓝图变为现实，就要更好处理政府和市场关系，进一步全面深化改革，坚决破除妨碍推进中国式现代化的体制机制弊端，着力破解深层次体制机制障碍和结构性矛盾，更好激发全社会内生动力和创新活力，为推进中国式现代化注入强大动力、提供制度保障。

On the one hand, fully leverage the decisive role of the market in resource allocation to stimulate the vitality of various enterprises. Enterprises are the cells of the market economy, the mainstay of innovation and entrepreneurship, and the foundation for the entire economy to be full of vitality and flourish. It is necessary to better leverage the role of market mechanisms, create a fairer and more dynamic market environment, enable resources to be allocated more effectively according to market rules, maximize the stimulation of innovation and entrepreneurship vitality of various business entities such as enterprises, achieve optimization of resource allocation efficiency and maximization of benefits, and stimulate the endogenous driving force of the whole society. It is necessary to unswervingly consolidate and develop the public sector of the economy, and unswervingly encourage, support, and guide the development of the non-public sector of the economy, ensuring that all forms of ownership economies use factors of production equally according to law, participate fairly in market competition, and receive equal legal protection, promoting complementary advantages and common development of all forms of ownership economies.

一方面，充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，激发各类企业活力。企业是市场经济的细胞，是创新创业的主体，是整个经济充满生机活力和蓬勃发展的基础。要更好发挥市场机制作用，创造更加公平、更有活力的市场环境，使资源依据市场规则进行更为有效的配置，最大限度激发企业等各类经营主体的创新创业活力，实现资源配置效率最优化和效益最大化，激发全社会内生动力。要毫不动摇巩固和发展公有制经济，毫不动摇鼓励、支持、引导非公有制经济发展，保证各种所有制经济依法平等使用生产要素、公平参与市场竞争、同等受到法律保护，促进各种所有制经济优势互补、共同发展。

On the other hand, scientific macro-regulation and effective government governance are inherent requirements for leveraging the advantages of the socialist market economy system. Better leveraging the government's role does not mean expanding the government's role, but rather, on the premise of fully leveraging the market's decisive role in resource allocation, managing matters that the market cannot manage or manages poorly, achieving no misplacement, no overstepping, and no absence, and shifting focus to strengthening and optimizing public services, ensuring fair competition, strengthening market supervision, and maintaining market order. Better leveraging the government's role requires improving the macroeconomic governance system, perfecting the macro-regulation institutional system, strengthening policy coordination and alignment, maintaining the stability of macroeconomic operations, continuously enhancing the capacity and level of macroeconomic governance, advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, and better transforming China's institutional advantages into national governance effectiveness.

另一方面，科学的宏观调控、有效的政府治理，是发挥社会主义市场经济体制优势的内在要求。更好发挥政府作用，不是要更多发挥政府作用，而是要在充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用的前提下，管好那些市场管不了或管不好的事情，做到不错位、不越位、不缺位，把重点转到加强和优化公共服务、保障公平竞争、加强市场监管、维护市场秩序上来。更好发挥政府作用，就要健全宏观经济治理体系，完善宏观调控制度体系，强化政策统筹协调，保持宏观经济运行稳定，不断提升宏观经济治理能力水平、推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化，把我国制度优势更好转化为国家治理效能。

Embarking on the new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country, it is necessary to continue handling the relationship between the government and the market well, allowing the "visible hand" and the "invisible hand" to each display their strengths and move in the same direction, forming a strong synergy for high-quality development, and promoting continuous new progress and breakthroughs in Chinese-path modernization.

迈上全面建设社会主义现代化国家新征程，必须继续处理好政府和市场关系，让“看得见的手”和“看不见的手”各展其长、同向而行，形成高质量发展的强大合力，推动中国式现代化不断取得新进展新突破。

Focal Points for Building a High-Level Socialist Market Economy System

构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制的发力点

The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC [2]2 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC: A major meeting of the Central Committee, held in July 2024, focused on further comprehensively deepening reforms. proposed that a high-level socialist market economy system is an important guarantee for Chinese-path modernization. The socialist market economy system is a major theoretical and practical innovation of socialism with Chinese characteristics, a significant achievement of reform and opening up, and an important institutional guarantee for promoting economic development. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC [3]3 The 18th National Congress of the CPC: Held in November 2012, marking the beginning of the Xi Jinping era and the initiation of a new wave of comprehensive reforms., the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has attached great importance to the reform of the socialist market economy system, placing the adherence to and improvement of the socialist market economy system in an important position in comprehensively deepening reforms, and planning and deploying a series of major tasks and measures.

党的二十届三中全会提出，高水平社会主义市场经济体制是中国式现代化的重要保障。社会主义市场经济体制是中国特色社会主义的重大理论和实践创新，是改革开放取得的重大成果，是推动经济发展的重要制度保障。党的十八大以来，以习近平同志为核心的党中央高度重视社会主义市场经济体制改革，把坚持和完善社会主义市场经济体制摆在全面深化改革重要位置，谋划和部署一系列重大任务和举措。

Through continuously improving the basic socialist economic system, accelerating the improvement of the socialist market economy system, fully leveraging the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, and better leveraging the government's role, China's market system and macro-regulation system have been continuously improved, solid achievements have been made in high-quality development, the country's comprehensive strength has achieved a historic leap, and decisive steps have been taken on the journey to becoming prosperous and strong. Practice has fully proven that the establishment and improvement of the socialist market economy system have greatly mobilized the enthusiasm of hundreds of millions of people, greatly promoted the development of productive forces, and greatly enhanced the vitality of the Party and the state.

通过不断完善社会主义基本经济制度，加快完善社会主义市场经济体制，充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，更好发挥政府作用，我国市场体系和宏观调控体系不断健全，高质量发展取得扎实成效，国家综合实力实现历史性跃升，在富起来、强起来的征程上迈出了决定性的步伐。实践充分证明，社会主义市场经济体制的建立和完善极大调动了亿万人民的积极性、极大促进了生产力发展、极大增强了党和国家的生机活力。

The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC clearly proposed that the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reforms is to continue improving and developing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. By 2035, a high-level socialist market economy system will be fully established, the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics will be more mature, the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity will be basically realized, socialist modernization will be basically realized, laying a solid foundation for comprehensively building a great modern socialist country by the middle of this century. Economic system reform is the focus of further comprehensively deepening reforms, and building a high-level socialist market economy system is an important focal point for further comprehensively deepening reforms. It is necessary to fully leverage the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, better leverage the government's role, adhere to and improve the basic socialist economic system, promote high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening, promote high-level opening up, build a modern economic system, accelerate the construction of a new development pattern, and promote high-quality development.

党的二十届三中全会明确提出，进一步全面深化改革的总目标是继续完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化。到2035年，全面建成高水平社会主义市场经济体制，中国特色社会主义制度更加完善，基本实现国家治理体系和治理能力现代化，基本实现社会主义现代化，为到本世纪中叶全面建成社会主义现代化强国奠定坚实基础。经济体制改革是进一步全面深化改革的重点，构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制是进一步全面深化改革的重要着力点，要充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，更好发挥政府作用，坚持和完善社会主义基本经济制度，推进高水平科技自立自强，促进高水平对外开放，建设现代化经济体系，加快构建新发展格局，推动高质量发展。

Facing multiple challenges at home and abroad, it is necessary to take economic system reform as the driving force, focus on building a high-level socialist market economy system, further comprehensively deepen reforms, and provide institutional guarantees for achieving high-quality development. Compared with the requirements for building a high-level socialist market economy system, China currently still has obvious shortcomings and weaknesses. For example, market development is not yet sufficient, the relationship between the government and the market has not been fully straightened out, innovation capacity does not meet the requirements of high-quality development, the industrial system as a whole is large but not strong, comprehensive but not refined, the situation of being constrained by others in key core technologies has not fundamentally changed, the agricultural foundation is not yet solid, the gap in urban-rural regional development and income distribution is still relatively large, and there are still shortcomings in people's livelihood security and ecological environmental protection, among others. To build a high-level socialist market economy system, breakthroughs and innovations must be achieved in these key and fundamental areas.

面对国内国际的重重挑战，必须以经济体制改革为牵引，聚焦构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，进一步全面深化改革，为实现高质量发展提供体制保障。对照构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制的要求，当前我国还存在明显的短板与弱项。比如，市场发育还不充分，政府和市场的关系尚未完全理顺，创新能力不适应高质量发展要求，产业体系整体大而不强、全而不精，关键核心技术受制于人状况没有根本改变，农业基础还不稳固，城乡区域发展和收入分配差距仍然较大，民生保障、生态环境保护仍存短板，等等。构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，必须在这些关键性基础性领域实现突破和创新。

First, focus on "fairer and more dynamic." To build a high-level socialist market economy system, it is necessary to better leverage the role of market mechanisms and create a fairer and more dynamic market environment. It is necessary to accelerate the construction of a unified national market, deepen market-oriented reforms of factors of production, build a high-standard market system, and promote the unification of basic market system rules, the unification of fair market supervision, and the high-standard connectivity of market infrastructure. Continuously improve basic market economic systems such as property rights protection, market access, fair competition, and social credit, strengthen the rigid constraints of fair competition review, strengthen anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition, and clean up and abolish various regulations and practices that hinder a unified national market and fair competition. Improve the systems and rules for factor markets, promote the smooth flow of production factors, the efficient allocation of various resources, and the full release of market potential. Improve the mechanism for determining factor prices mainly based on market supply and demand, and prevent improper government intervention in price formation. Improve the mechanism for production factors such as labor, capital, land, knowledge, technology, management, and data to be evaluated by the market for their contribution and to determine remuneration based on their contribution.

其一，聚焦“更加公平、更有活力”发力。构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，必须更好发挥市场机制作用，创造更加公平、更有活力的市场环境。要加快建设全国统一大市场，深化要素市场化改革，建设高标准市场体系，推动市场基础制度规则统一、市场监管公平统一、市场设施高标准联通。不断完善产权保护、市场准入、公平竞争、社会信用等市场经济基础制度，加强公平竞争审查刚性约束，强化反垄断和反不正当竞争，清理和废除妨碍全国统一市场和公平竞争的各种规定和做法。完善要素市场制度和规则，推动生产要素畅通流动、各类资源高效配置、市场潜力充分释放。完善主要由市场供求关系决定要素价格机制，防止政府对价格形成的不当干预。健全劳动、资本、土地、知识、技术、管理、数据等生产要素由市场评价贡献、按贡献决定报酬的机制。

Second, focus on making the system “more complete, systematic, and mature and well-defined.” Straightening out the relationship between the government and the market is the “ox nose” of further deepening economic system reform. Deepening economic system reform is a systematic project involving many aspects such as the market system, enterprise system, macroeconomic management, fiscal and financial systems, labor and employment, social security, and the external economy. Among these, the relationship between the government and the market occupies the core position. Only by firmly grasping the “ox nose” of handling the relationship between the government and the market, which has an overall and guiding role, can we drive the whole situation with key points, solve deep-seated problems in the economic system, and push economic system reform forward in depth. It must also be noted that economic system reform has an important influence and transmission effect on reforms in other areas; the pace of major economic system reform determines the pace of many other institutional reforms, and a single move in one part may affect the whole situation. In the process of Chinese-path modernization, adhering to economic construction as the central task inevitably requires taking economic system reform as the focus and driver, leading reforms in other fields, so that reforms in all aspects advance in coordination and form synergy. Focusing on current problems such as sluggish factor flow, low resource allocation efficiency, and weak microeconomic vitality, we must persistently exert efforts around the core issue of handling the relationship between the government and the market, deepen reforms in related fields, adhere to the direction of the socialist market economy, and strive to build an economic system with effective market mechanisms, vibrant micro-entities, and appropriate macroeconomic regulation, making the high-level socialist market economy system more complete, systematic, mature, and well-defined.

其二，聚焦“更加系统完备、更加成熟定型”发力。理顺政府和市场关系是进一步深化经济体制改革的“牛鼻子”。深化经济体制改革是一个系统工程，涉及市场体系、企业制度、宏观管理、财政金融、劳动就业、社会保障、对外经济等诸多方面。其中，政府和市场关系居于核心位置。只有将处理好政府和市场关系这个具有全局性和牵引作用的“牛鼻子”牢牢抓在手上，才能以重点带动全局，解决好经济体制中的深层次问题，推动经济体制改革向纵深迈进。还要看到，经济体制改革对其他方面改革具有重要影响和传导作用，重大经济体制改革的进度决定着其他方面很多体制改革的进度，具有牵一发而动全身的作用。在中国式现代化建设进程中，坚持以经济建设为中心，必然要求以经济体制改革为重点和牵引，带动其他领域改革，使各方面改革协同推进、形成合力。着眼目前要素流动不畅、资源配置效率不高、微观经济活力不强等问题，我们必须紧紧围绕处理好政府和市场关系这一核心问题持续发力，深化相关领域改革，坚持社会主义市场经济方向，着力构建市场机制有效、微观主体有活力、宏观调控有度的经济体制，让高水平社会主义市场经济体制更加系统完备、更加成熟定型。

Third, focus on “systematic, holistic, and coordinated” efforts. The “Decision” proposes that one of the principles for further comprehensively deepening reform is “adhering to a systematic concept, properly handling major relationships such as economy and society, government and market, efficiency and fairness, vitality and order, development and security, and enhancing the systematic, holistic, and coordinated nature of reform.” Emphasizing systematic, holistic, and coordinated efforts is both a working method and a strategic thinking; it is not only valuable experience for successful reform but also a winning strategy for continuing progress. Building a high-level socialist market economy system must adhere to systematic planning, overall advancement, and coordinated development. All of this is inseparable from better playing the role of the government. The basic socialist economic system is an organic whole internally unified by the mutual connection and promotion of public ownership as the mainstay with diverse forms of ownership developing together, distribution according to work as the mainstay with multiple modes of distribution coexisting, and the socialist market economy system. To build a high-level socialist market economy system, we cannot merely focus on the market economy system alone; we must regard it as an important component of the basic socialist economic system, carry out systematic planning and overall layout with scientific top-level design, and further comprehensively deepen economic system reform. The deeper the reform, the more attention must be paid to coordination. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasizes: “We must ensure that reforms in all aspects advance in coordination toward the goal of establishing a sound socialist market economy system, while also making the relevant links in each aspect better adapt to the new requirements raised by the development of the socialist market economy.” To build a high-level socialist market economy system, we must find the best combination point for government behavior and market functions, promote better integration of an effective government and an efficient market, fully leverage the advantages of both the government and the market, and continuously push economic system reform deeper.

其三，聚焦“系统性、整体性、协同性”发力。《决定》提出，进一步全面深化改革的原则之一是“坚持系统观念，处理好经济和社会、政府和市场、效率和公平、活力和秩序、发展和安全等重大关系，增强改革系统性、整体性、协同性”。注重系统性、整体性、协同性，是一种工作方法，也是一种战略思维，既是改革成功的宝贵经验，也是继续前进的制胜之道。构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，必须坚持系统谋划、整体推进、协同发展。而这一切，离不开更好发挥政府作用。公有制为主体、多种所有制经济共同发展，按劳分配为主体、多种分配方式并存，社会主义市场经济体制，三者相互联系、相互促进，作为有机整体内在统一于社会主义基本经济制度。构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，不能仅仅单就市场经济体制而言，必须将其作为社会主义基本经济制度的重要组成部分，以科学的顶层设计进行系统谋划、总体布局，进一步全面深化经济体制改革。改革越深入，越要注意协同。习近平总书记强调：“要使各方面体制改革朝着建立完善的社会主义市场经济体制这一方向协同推进，同时也使各方面自身相关环节更好适应社会主义市场经济发展提出的新要求。”构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，必须找准政府行为和市场功能的最佳结合点，推动有为政府和有效市场更好结合，切实把政府和市场的优势都充分发挥出来，把经济体制改革不断推向深入。

Forming new quality productive forces requires coordinated efforts from the government and the market

形成新质生产力需政府市场协同发力

New quality productive forces are an advanced form of productive forces where innovation plays a leading role, breaking away from traditional economic growth modes and paths of productive forces development, characterized by high technology, high efficiency, and high quality, and conforming to the new development concept. The distinctive feature of new quality productive forces is innovation, manifested in promoting revolutionary breakthroughs in technology, innovative allocation of production factors, deep transformation and upgrading of industries, and driving the optimized combination and renewed leap of laborers, means of labor, and objects of labor, giving rise to new industries, new models, and new drivers. Accelerating the formation and development of new quality productive forces is a long-term systematic project that must strengthen innovation in key common technologies, cutting-edge leading technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies.

新质生产力是创新起主导作用，摆脱传统经济增长方式、生产力发展路径，以高科技、高效能、高质量为特征，符合新发展理念的先进生产力质态。新质生产力的显著特点是创新，体现为推动技术革命性突破、生产要素创新性配置、产业深度转型升级，推动劳动者、劳动资料、劳动对象优化组合和更新跃升，催生新产业、新模式、新动能。加快形成和发展新质生产力，是一个长期性的系统工程，必须要加强关键共性技术、前沿引领技术、现代工程技术、颠覆性技术创新。

New quality productive forces are cultivated and driven jointly by the government’s “visible hand” and the market’s “invisible hand.” However, there is a cognitive misunderstanding in academia regarding the role of government in technological innovation and technological change, namely, that innovation can only emerge from the market, that the market naturally encourages and promotes innovation, and that government intervention only hinders innovation. Examining the history of human scientific and technological innovation development and the economic development history of countries around the world reveals that from the Industrial Revolution to the Information Revolution, governments have occupied an important position in leading technological revolutions and have played a dominant role in innovation. The development process of China’s reform and opening up over more than 40 years also proves that handling the relationship between the government and the market is key to promoting scientific and technological innovation and industrial prosperity, and to fostering the formation and development of advanced productive forces. It is precisely because of correctly handling the relationship between the government and the market that China has been able to continuously achieve major technological breakthroughs in the field of science and technology, moving from “following” to “running alongside” and even “leading.” Therefore, both the development process of Western modernization and China’s great practice of reform and opening up show that correctly handling the relationship between the government and the market is of great significance for technological breakthroughs, industrial development, and the progress of productive forces.

新质生产力是政府“有形之手”和市场“无形之手”共同培育和驱动形成的。但关于政府在科技创新和技术变革中的作用，学界存在认识误区，即认为创新的涌现只能来自市场，市场天然鼓励和推动创新，政府的干预只会阻碍创新。而考察人类科技创新发展史和世界各国经济发展史可以发现，从工业革命到信息革命，政府在引领技术革命中都占据重要地位，在创新方面均发挥主导作用。我国改革开放40多年的发展历程也证明，处理好政府和市场关系是推动科技创新与产业繁荣、促进先进生产力形成和发展的关键。正是因为正确处理好政府和市场关系，我国才得以不断取得科技领域的重大技术突破，实现由“跟跑”向“并跑”甚至“领跑”迈进。因此，西方现代化的发展历程和我国的改革开放伟大实践都表明，正确处理好政府和市场关系对技术突破、产业发展和生产力进步具有重要意义。

On the one hand, it is necessary to better play the role of the government, advance major scientific and technological breakthroughs, and achieve breakthroughs in bottlenecks for original, disruptive, and key technological innovations. In the process of enhancing national scientific and technological competitiveness, government investment in science and technology projects plays a very important guiding and supporting role. Because scientific and technological innovation is characterized by large investment, long cycles, and high risks, coupled with the fact that major technological innovations in new fields, new tracks, and new industries face great uncertainty, ordinary enterprises can hardly bear the cycle of such research and development, nor can they easily bear the risk of innovation failure. Therefore, it can only be through the government that such basic and key technology research and development breakthroughs are promoted. In basic research, applied basic research, and talent cultivation, the government should increase stable and concentrated investment to produce cumulative effects. At the same time, key scientific and technological research projects, especially major basic research projects, often require the joint participation of multiple innovation entities. The government has incomparable advantages in organization and coordination and should, through planning guidance, policy direction, and fiscal and tax support, coordinate enterprises along the industrial chain to improve the overall efficiency of social innovation. On the other hand, it is necessary to fully leverage the role of the market to promote the efficient market transformation of scientific and technological achievements. Under the incentive of the market, a large number of enterprises experiment, compete, and cooperate on emerging technological paths, thereby developing new technologies, new products, and generating new business forms. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize the development environment for private enterprises, remove institutional barriers that restrict private enterprises from fair market competition, vigorously support qualified enterprises to increase R&D investment, support the construction of government-enterprise joint research platforms and carriers, encourage leading enterprises to form innovation consortia, strengthen the dominant position of enterprises in innovation, and accelerate the transformation of scientific and technological achievements into real productive forces. Only when the “visible hand” and the “invisible hand” work in synergy, achieving an effective government and an efficient market, can we better facilitate the formation and development of new quality productive forces.

一方面，要更好发挥政府作用，推进重大科技攻关，实现原创性、颠覆性、关键性技术创新的瓶颈突破。在增强国家科技竞争力的过程中，政府投资科技项目起着十分重要的引导和支撑作用。由于科技创新具有投入大、周期长、风险高等特点，加之新领域新赛道新产业上的重大技术创新面临很大的不确定性，一般的企业很难承受这种研发的周期，也很难承担这种创新失败的风险，因而只能通过政府来推动此类基础性、关键性技术的研发攻关。在基础研究、应用基础研究和人才培养上，政府要加大力度集中稳定地投入，以产生积累性效果。与此同时，关键科技攻关项目尤其是重大基础研究攻关项目往往需要多元创新主体的共同参与。政府在组织协调上拥有不可比拟的优势，应通过规划引领、政策引导、财税支持等方式，将产业链上下游的企业协同起来，提升全社会创新效率。另一方面，要充分发挥市场作用，促进科技成果高效率市场转化。在市场的激励下，大量的企业在新兴技术路线上试错、竞争与合作，进而开发出新技术、新产品，产生新业态。因此，要优化民营企业发展环境，破除制约民营企业公平参与市场竞争的制度障碍，大力支持有条件的企业加大研发投入力度，支持建设政企联合研究平台载体，鼓励领军企业组建创新联合体，强化企业创新主体地位，加快科技成果向现实生产力转化。只有“看得见的手”和“看不见的手”协同作用，实现政府有为、市场有效，才能更好助力新质生产力的形成和发展。

The new system for mobilizing resources nationwide is an important institutional mechanism for developing new quality productive forces. At the same time, improving this new system is a key manifestation of properly handling the relationship between the government and the market. In recent years, some Western countries have built “small yards, high fences,” [6]6 “Small yards, high fences” (小院高墙) is a metaphor used by U.S. policymakers to describe a strategy of restricting China’s access to advanced technologies in a narrow set of critical areas while maintaining broader economic engagement. continuously provoking trade wars and technology wars against China, and persistently adopting technological blockades and containment. China still faces “bottleneck” problems in key core technologies in fields such as electronic information, aerospace, and biomedicine. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China [7]7 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC was held in July 2024, focusing on deepening reform and advancing Chinese modernization. emphasized improving the new system for mobilizing resources nationwide to enhance the overall effectiveness of the national innovation system. This is an inevitable requirement for implementing the innovation-driven development strategy. Under the complex domestic and international environment, the new system for mobilizing resources nationwide emphasizes the organic integration and synergistic role of the government and the market. It both leverages the advantage of concentrating resources to accomplish major tasks, giving play to the government’s coordinating role in the allocation of innovation resources, targeting key areas, major projects, and major tasks, concentrating superior forces to overcome difficulties and achieve breakthroughs, and fully exerts the decisive role of the market in resource allocation. Centered on the national development strategy and the needs of economic and social development, it promotes the agglomeration and efficient allocation of various innovation factors, maximizes the utilization of limited innovation resources, fully mobilizes the innovation vitality of various business entities, and pools joint forces to create greater innovation effectiveness.

新型举国体制是发展新质生产力的重要体制机制，同时，健全新型举国体制是处理好政府和市场关系的重要体现。近年来，一些西方国家构筑“小院高墙”，不断对我国挑起贸易战和科技战，并持续采取技术封锁与遏制，我国在电子信息、航空航天、生物医药等领域仍面临一些关键核心技术“卡脖子”问题。党的二十届三中全会强调，健全新型举国体制，提升国家创新体系整体效能。这是实施创新驱动发展战略的必然要求。在复杂的国内国际环境下，新型举国体制强调政府和市场的有机结合、协同作用，既发挥集中力量办大事的优势，发挥政府在创新资源配置中的统筹协调作用，瞄准重点领域、重大项目和重大任务，集中优势力量攻坚克难取得突破，又充分发挥市场配置资源的决定性作用，围绕国家发展战略和经济社会发展需求，推动各类创新要素集聚与高效配置，实现有限创新资源的最大化利用并充分调动各类经营主体的创新活力，凝聚合力创造更大创新效能。

Facing the surging wave of a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, and facing fierce competition among major powers under the changes unseen in a century, China must accelerate the improvement of the new system for mobilizing resources nationwide under the conditions of the socialist market economy. It should precisely implement policies targeting national strategic scientific and technological forces and areas of strategic competition that must be contested, focusing on leveraging the leading role of national laboratories, the organizational role of national research institutions with an institutionalized structure, the main force role of high-level research universities, and the roles of leading technology enterprises as “question-setters,” “answer-writers,” and “examiners.” [8]8 The “question-setter,” “answer-writer,” and “examiner” metaphor describes the role of leading technology enterprises in identifying research problems, solving them, and evaluating outcomes within the national innovation system. It should systematically advance strategy-oriented foundational research with a systemic approach, frontier-oriented exploratory foundational research, and market-oriented applied foundational research, achieving a better combination of an enabling government and an effective market. This will allow all types of advanced and high-quality production factors to flow smoothly toward the development of new quality productive forces, accelerate the formation and development of new quality productive forces, and secure the initiative in development amid fierce international competition.

面对新一轮科技革命和产业变革的汹涌浪潮，面对百年变局之下激烈的大国竞争，我国要加快健全社会主义市场经济条件下新型举国体制，针对国家战略科技力量、战略博弈必争领域精准施策，注重发挥国家实验室引领作用、国家科研机构建制化组织作用、高水平研究型大学主力军作用和科技领军企业“出题人”“答题人”“阅卷人”作用，有组织推进战略导向的体系化基础研究、前沿导向的探索性基础研究、市场导向的应用性基础研究，实现有为政府和有效市场更好结合，让各类先进优质生产要素向发展新质生产力顺畅流动，加快形成和发展新质生产力，在激烈的国际竞争中掌握发展主动权。

Online editor: Paul

网络编辑：保罗