Seeking the Theoretical Origins of Supply-side Structural Reform*

The theoretical origins of supply theory and supply-side structural reform lie in British and French classical economics, with their longstanding interest in supply, rather than in the later emergence of Jean-Baptiste Say and Say's Law, which attempts to deny the possibility of economic crises. Marx deepened supply theory, holding that production (supply) structure and product (income) distribution structure depended on the nature and structure of relations of production. This theory has been especially significant in guiding supply-side structural reform in China. The main reference value of American supply-side economics lies in some of its policy proposals for reforming and managing supply. Supply-side structural reform in China requires the development of a socialist supply theory with Chinese characteristics.