重商主义真相探解

A Reassessment of Mercantilism in Historical Perspective

国内外主流学界普遍相信,重商主义是一种荒谬的学说、有害的体制。实证历史考察却表明,这种看法十分片面。重商主义诞生于民族国家兴起、国际竞争激化的近代欧洲,主张通过金银积累、贸易保护、工业扶植、就业促进、国家干预、强权打造、殖民征服等手段,实现富强并赶超先进。这套经邦济国的理论与实践曾在西方长期盛行,实际上掀起了一场早慧的经济学革命,促成了西方领先的工业化和现代化,当然也为后世留下了经济民族主义范式。作为欧洲传统之产物,重商主义与中世纪的贸易中心城政策、城市保供应政策以及手工业行会制度其实一脉相承,深挖这一历史根源有助于探解西方率先崛起的独特性和必然性。从古典到新古典自由经济学尽管受益于重商主义,但又对之大加贬损。重商主义实乃一份兼具思想性与实践性的丰厚遗产,后发国家学界尤其应该勇于拨乱反正并善于取其精华以为今用。

Mercantilism is widely believed to be an erroneous and insidious doctrine. Probes into history, however, reveals that nothing could be further from the troth. Born in the early modem period when Europe witnessed the rise of competing nation-states, mercantilism was indeed a sophisticated policy tool involving trade protection, bullion accumulation, industrial promotion, employment cre- ation, state intervention and colonial expansion, designed to enrich and strengthen the emerging nation and state. Though hardly given credit, mercantilism in fact represented a precocious revolution in eco- nomic thinking and an effective strategy of industrialization and modernization. It also, of course, con- solidated the paradigm of economic nationalism for the modem world by building on the medieval poli- cies of the staple and the provision as well as the gild system. While disparaged by liberal economics, mercantilism, with its rich experiences of promoting economic development, could serve as a valuable source of reference, particularly for the policy-making in underdeveloped countries today.