Known as "Li the Shareholding Guru," economist Yining Li has had a significant impact on Chinas economic transition, most notably as an early advocate of ownership reforms in the state and other non-private sectors and in his promotion of shareholding theory, initiating the drive towards a modern corporate system in China. The thinking behind these and other landmark contributions that have helped to reshape China are featured in Chinese Economic Reform and Development, a collection of seventeen influential essays written and published from 1980 to 2015. Incorporating original research, policy proposals, and theoretical thinking, these essays trace the development of Lis thought and the process through which the "China Miracle" has been worked over the last four decades. This updated new edition introduces how inextricably linked Lis academic work has been to the development of a distinctively Chinese path of economic reform.

Yining Li is a leading Chinese economist. He is credited with providing the theoretical basis for the market-oriented reform that has propelled China's economic growth. His policy proposals to top-echelon policymakers also led to the establishment of China's stock markets and a modern corporate system.