Intheneweconomicera,peopleseemtofeeltheemergenceofaneconomicformdifferentfromthepast.OnDecember30,1996,theUS"BusinessWeekly"publishedanarticleentitled"TheTriumphoftheNewEconomy",whichwastheearliestresponsetothisphenomenon.Editor-in-chiefStephenShepardpointedoutthattheUnitedStateshasenteredaneweconomicera.
Accordingtothe"2001USPresident’sEconomicReport":"Theneweconomyreferstothebenigninteractionoftechnology,businesspractices,andeconomicpolicies,resultinginhugeeconomicperformance.Itsspecificmanifestationisarapideconomy.Growthandrisingincomes,lowunemploymentandmoderateinflation.”ThisunderstandingismorecommonintheUnitedStates.
XuZhihanpointedoutthattheneweconomiceraismarkedbyknowledgeeconomy,virtualeconomyandnetworkeconomy.Buttheneweconomydoesnotonlyincludeknowledgeeconomy,virtualeconomyandnetworkeconomy.Therealneweconomyerashouldbeacomprehensivecombinationoftraditionalindustriesandknowledgeeconomy,virtualeconomyandnetworkeconomy.
Theneweconomyisahistoricalprogress.Theneweconomyisaglobaleconomybasedontheknowledgeeconomy.Thebasiccharacteristicsoftheneweconomyarehigh-techandglobalization.Theneweconomyandthetraditionaleconomyhavefivedistinctcharacteristics:theexchangeofeconomicentitiesisdifferent,andtheneweconomytendstobegloballyintegrated;theexchangemethodisdifferent,whichusese-commerceasthemainmeansofexchange;theproductionmethodisdifferent,anditismainlyintensive;growthThedrivingforceisdifferent.Ituseshightechnologyandinformationasthedrivingforceforgrowth;resourcesareshared,anditssupplytomankindisunlimited.Theneweconomyisaneconomywithmodernscienceandtechnologyasitscoreandbasedontheproduction,distributionanduseofknowledgeandinformation.
Correspondingtothebasiccharacteristicsoftheneweconomy,theentirehumansocialenvironmenthasundergoneextremelyprofoundchanges.Whatispresentedtopeopleisabrand-neweconomicera.Themainsignsofthiseraare:
(1)Therapiddevelopmentofinformatizationandnetwork.Sincethelastcentury,theemergenceofcomputers,theInternetandopticalfibershasbroughttheentireworldintotheinformationage.Peoplecanlearnabouteventsthathaveoccurredintheworldatanymomentinanyplaceintheworld,andrealize"communicationswithoutleavinghome.""Andparticipation,andthemeansandmethodsofthiscommunicationarebecomingmoreandmoreconciseandtransparent;
(2)Thetraditionaltransportationindustryhasmadegreatprogress.Expresswaysandhigh-speedrailwayshavedevelopedrapidly,andairtransportationhasbecomeincreasinglypopular,anditisnolongeraluxury.Thespeedandscaleofphysicaltransmissionhavebeengreatlyimproved;
(3)TheendoftheColdWar,theappearanceofideologicalcompetitionTheeconomygiveswaytothecompetitionofeconomicdevelopmentstrength,andcountrieshavefocusedtheirattentiononeconomicconstruction;
(4)Theeconomyisshowingatrendofglobalintegration.Concentratedintheglobalizationofthemarket,thatis,thedemandmarketisopentoanycompanyandnaturalpersonintheworld,andcompaniesandnaturalpersonsmayseektheirownmarketsonaglobalscale;theglobalizationofresourceallocation,thatis,whenpeoplechoosetoallocateresources,theyarenolongerOnlylimitedtoone'sowncountryandregion,butcanuseone'sownstrengthandsenseofsmelltoselectvariousresourcesrecognizedbyoneselfonaglobalscale,therebyimprovingone'sownallocationefficiency;themostobviousthingabouttheinternationalizationofcompetitionrulesisMostcountrieshavejoinedtheWorldTradeOrganization(WTO)andrecognizeandapplyitscompetitionrules.Duetothedifferentabilitiesofpeopleingrabbingthemarketandpossessingresources,aswellastheirdifferentqualitativestatusininternationaleconomicorganizations,economicglobalizationbringsdifferentbenefitstocountriesandgroups:
(5)Resourcesaremorescarce,andthecontradictionbetweeneconomicdevelopmentandresourceshortageismoreprominent;
(6)Environmentalprotectionissuesaremoreprominent,andsustainabledevelopmenthasbecomethefocusofincreasingattention..
Theemergenceoftheneweconomicerahasnotonlybroughtnewopportunitiestotheeconomicdevelopmentofvariouscountries,butalsobroughtnewchallengestoenterprisesineconomicallyunderdevelopedcountries.Infact,allpreviouseconomicandtechnologicalrevolutionshaveproducedmajorchangesinthemeans,waysandefficiencyofresourceallocation,whichhavehadaprofoundimpactonpeople'slifestyles.