Yang's modern classical economics of specialisation and its implications

This article outlines Professor Xiaokai Yang's life and contributions to economics in developing inframarginal economics or the modern classical economics of specialisation and division of labour. It explains the central trade-off between economies of specialisation and the additional transaction costs involved and the relevance for economic growth and the evolution of economic organisations. The implications of the new framework are also discussed, including a better view of globalization and the importance of organisational efficiency.