China's ancient commerce originated in the pre-Shang period, initially developed in the Qin and Han Dynasties, and further developed in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

1. Shang Yexing started in the pre-Qin period.

China people learned to do business very early, and merchants in the Xia Dynasty began to do business. The seventh monarch of the Shang Dynasty, Wang Hai, was the ancestor of China's business.

People in Shang Dynasty used shellfish, including seashells, bone shells, stone shells, jade shells and copper shells. The appearance of copper shells shows that there was a metal casting currency in Shang Dynasty. In the Western Zhou Dynasty, commerce became an indispensable social and economic sector. At that time, under the system of "industrial and commercial food officials", commerce was monopolized by the state. In commercial exchange, shellfish is still the main currency, but copper is also used as a means of exchange.

copper itself is an important commodity, and it also bears the function of money. Later, it developed into casting copper coins. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the situation that the government controlled commerce was broken, and many commodity markets and big businessmen appeared everywhere.

During the Warring States Period, there were more kinds and shapes of copper coins minted and circulated in various countries, some imitating farm tools, some imitating various tools, and some imitating the shape of shells. The large number and variety of currencies reflect that commerce is more developed than in the past. The development of commodity exchange has promoted the prosperity of the city.

2. Preliminary development of commerce in Qin and Han Dynasties

After Qin Shihuang unified China, he decided to unify the currency in order to change the present situation of various currencies and different degrees (lengths), volumes (weights) and scales (weights) during the Warring States Period, and used the round square hole money originally circulated by Qin as the national standard currency, which is commonly known as "Qin Banliang". Unified measurement, the construction of Chidao, these measures are conducive to the development of business and national unity.

during the Han dynasty, with the formation and consolidation of the unified situation and the development of agriculture, animal husbandry and handicraft industry, especially the policy of "opening and closing the beam, relaxing the mountain and forbidding it" implemented by the Han government, commerce developed initially. At that time, the capitals Chang 'an and Luoyang, as well as big cities such as Suiyang, Wan (Nanyang) and Chengdu, all developed into famous commercial centers.

every city has a "market" dedicated to trade. Chang' an has cities in the east and west, and later developed into nine cities. At that time, the government adopted a policy of strictly restricting the commercial activities of the city. Urban and residential areas are strictly separated, and there are walls around them. There are shops selling goods in the city, and the government has full-time officials, city orders or mayors to manage them. The market opens and closes on time, and no business activities are allowed after the market closes. Prices in the city are also managed by officials.

Different from the past, the two Silk Roads on land and at sea were opened in the Han Dynasty, and the trade between China and foreign countries gradually developed.

3. Commerce in the Sui and Tang Dynasties

Except Chang 'an and Luoyang in the Yellow River valley, Songzhou and Yangzhou along the Grand Canal in the Sui and Tang Dynasties were all commercial metropolises at that time. Yuezhou and Hongzhou along the southeast coast have also become prosperous commercial cities. In the Tang Dynasty, Chang 'an had squares and cities. There are two cities, East City and West City. The city and the square are separated by walls, and the market is opened and closed regularly during the day. The East City and the West City each occupy two squares, each with 221 lines.

there are more than a thousand mansions in the east city, with mountains of goods and merchants. The Tang government allowed foreign businessmen to trade freely in China, and Hu merchants spread all over the metropolis. There are western regions in the western market, as well as Persia and big food merchants, and "Hu Feng" and "Hu Custom" are popular.

The population of Chang 'an City is no less than one million, and the demand for commodities from such a huge population has led to the prosperity of Chang 'an City. Rural fairs have also developed further. Especially near the main roads of land and water transportation, there are more and more fairs, and some of them have developed into important towns.

during the sui and Tang dynasties, foreign trade continued to develop. In the early Tang Dynasty, the Silk Road on land was unimpeded, and there was a busy scene of endless business travel. After the Anshi Rebellion, the focus of foreign commercial traffic shifted from northwest land to southeast sea lanes. Yuezhou is the largest foreign trade port in the southeast and a gathering place for foreign merchant ships. The Tang government has a city ambassador here, specializing in foreign trade.

4. The commercial prosperity in the Song Dynasty

was based on the fact that the strict separation of markets was broken and the time for commodity trading was no longer limited since the late Tang Dynasty. The commercial prosperity in the Song Dynasty was all-round, with not only a wide variety of goods, but also domestic trade, border trade and foreign trade. The prosperity of business has had an important impact. The Yuan Dynasty realized the unprecedented unification of the country and promoted the continued prosperity of commerce.

Reasons for the commercial prosperity in the Song Dynasty

The commercial prosperity in the Song Dynasty was unprecedented. First of all, after the establishment of the Northern Song Dynasty, the separatist regime in the late Tang Dynasty, Five Dynasties and Ten Countries was eliminated, the social economy developed normally, and the high development of agriculture and handicrafts provided a solid material foundation for the prosperity of commerce. Secondly, the government gradually relaxed the restrictions on commodity trading.

since the late Tang dynasty, the strict separation of shops was gradually broken. by the song dynasty, shops could be opened everywhere, and the trading time was changed from the restriction of Japan to China, so they could operate in the morning and evening. Third, although metal money was still used in the market in the Song Dynasty, in the Northern Song Dynasty, wealthy businessmen in Yizhou, Sichuan Province began to issue paper money "Jiaozi", which was the earliest paper money in the world.

Later, the government set up Jiaozi in Yizhou to print and distribute Jiaozi. In the Southern Song Dynasty, paper money was widely used and its circulation increased greatly. The issuance and use of paper money facilitates commercial activities and promotes commercial prosperity. Fourth, the land and water transportation was convenient in the Song Dynasty, especially the smooth maritime Silk Road, which was beneficial to the development of foreign trade.

the commercial prosperity in the song dynasty

the commercial prosperity in the song dynasty was first manifested as the prosperity of urban commerce. The prosperous metropolis promoted Kaifeng, the capital of the Song Dynasty, and Lin 'an, the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. Kaifeng has become increasingly prosperous since the Five Dynasties, and by the time of the Northern Song Dynasty, it had developed into a mega-city with a population of over one million in the world, and its commerce was unprecedentedly prosperous. There are both bustling commercial blocks and professional trading places in the city.

There are many shops in the city, and the trade is booming. The morning market and the night market are connected day and night, and restaurants, teahouses and tiles are scattered. The variety of commodities has increased, and various types of fairs have appeared. Many agricultural and sideline products and handicrafts began to turn to the market and become important commodities. For example, the surplus grain of farmers in Su Hu and the bamboo and wood wares made by southern artisans have all become commodities.

In the Northern Song Dynasty, the variety of goods increased, and merchants paid attention to the packaging of goods, and also paid attention to advertising their own goods. The popular proverb "Su Hu is ripe, and the world is sufficient" in the Southern Song Dynasty shows that the surplus grain of farmers in Su Hu has become an important commodity. There are also different types of markets in the city, which are regular and irregular, professional and seasonal. Business tax revenue has increasingly become an important source of revenue for the government.

during the song dynasty, border trade flourished. The Northern Song Dynasty confronted Liao and Xixia, and the Southern Song Dynasty confronted Jin. In the Song Dynasty, the border areas adjacent to Liao, Xixia and Jin were set up to conduct bilateral trade and exchange needed goods, which was very profitable.

during the song dynasty, overseas trade was developed. The Maritime Silk Road was unimpeded in the Song Dynasty, and the government paid special attention to overseas trade. In this way, overseas trade has developed. During the Northern Song Dynasty, dozens of countries traded with China in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Arabian Peninsula and even Africa. In the Southern Song Dynasty, overseas trade developed further, and foreign trade tax became one of the important sources of treasury wealth.

5. Business continued to prosper in the Yuan Dynasty

The Yuan Dynasty achieved unprecedented national reunification and laid the foundation for further economic development; Dredged the Grand Canal again, and the dredged Grand Canal went directly from Hangzhou to Dadu. Opened up the sea, which started from Liujia Port in the Yangtze River estuary and arrived in zhi gu (Tianjin) via the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea; The Yuan government also set up post stations all over the country, and the overland Silk Road across Europe and Asia also prospered again, which promoted the continued prosperity of commerce in the Yuan Dynasty.

Most of the Yuan Dynasty was a political and cultural center, and it was also a prosperous international business metropolis. Caravans came to metropolis from Eastern Europe, Central Asia, African coast, Japan, Korea and all parts of Nanyang. There are more than 31 markets in the city, with more than 111,111 households.

Shaoxing is the largest commercial and handicraft center in the south. "No one can say how much trade there is.". Quanzhou was an important port for foreign trade in the Yuan Dynasty, and there were often more than 111 seagoing ships moored here, which was praised by foreign travelers as the largest port in the world. The Yuan government set up a city shipping department here to strictly control foreign trade.

6. Huizhou merchants and Shanxi merchants in Ming and Qing Dynasties

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the small-scale peasant economy and the market were increasingly closely linked, and the commercialization of agricultural products was developed; The urban economy is prosperous and developing unprecedentedly, and many big cities and rural markets are very prosperous. Among them, Beijing and Nanjing are national commercial cities, which bring together specialties from all directions. Throughout the country, many regional merchant groups have emerged, called business gangs, among which Huizhou merchants and Shanxi merchants have the largest number and the strongest strength.

expanded data

China had a developed agricultural economy in ancient times, and its economic scale was ahead of the world for a long historical period. In history, due to the change of natural environment and the influence of human factors such as war, the economy of ancient China usually has the same cycle as the rise and fall of dynasties.

since the Ming dynasty (the maritime ban was implemented in the early Ming dynasty, and later Qin Long switched on and off, allowing private people to sell things far and wide), China stuck to the agricultural economy, while the western world took the lead in realizing the industrial revolution at the same time, and China's economy fell behind the west. Since the Opium War, China's original conservative agricultural economic system has been greatly challenged by the western world.

the process of industrial development in China, following the example of the west, has developed smoothly from the founding of the Republic of China National Government to the eve of the Sino-Japanese War, despite multiple interference from internal and external factors. Then until the end of the Sino-Japanese War and the National War, China had a relatively long period of peaceful development.

since the 1981s, the government of Deng Xiaoping has announced the reform and opening-up, started to implement the socialist market economy and carried out the economic system reform. From recent years to 2111, Chinese mainland has become the second largest economy in the world after the United States. It is generally believed that China is still the fastest-growing economy in the world, but its per capita GNP is still at the middle level in the world (89th), < P > and it is gradually restricted by resource constraints and the widening gap between the rich and the poor. Among the provinces of the People's Republic of China, Guangdong is the strongest province with the highest GDP and Zhejiang is the richest province with the highest per capita income.

The economic ties among Chinese mainland, Hongkong, Macau and Taiwan Province are getting closer and closer in the process of globalization.

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