Deng Xiaoping was the architect of the economic reform movement in 1978 . Reforms opened country up economically to the outside world . In 30 years China has maintained an average annual growth rate of 9.8 percent . Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping was the architect of the economic reform movement , which was to set the country on a radical new course when the first policies were approved on December 18 , 1978 . The economy is now one of the largest and most powerful economies on earth, with a GDP per capita that is more than twice as large as the US's ( $ 51,000 ).
Deng Xiaoping was the architect of the economic reform movement in 1978 . Reforms opened country up economically to the outside world . In 30 years China has maintained an average annual growth rate of 9.8 percent . The economy is now one of the largest and most powerful economies on earth, with a GDP per capita that is more than twice as large as the US's ( $ 51,000 ).