Overestimating the costs of reforms will make it very difficult to push reforms ahead, says an article in Nanfang Daily. Excerpts:

Reform is a painful process for some people, yet many more people will feel pain without reform. It is easy to estimate the costs of reforms, but the costs of not carrying out reforms cannot be estimated. Under proper institutional arrangements, the costs of reforms can be repaid by the benefits of reforms, while the costs of no reforms will accumulate to an unbearable level in society.

Both urbanization and boosting domestic consumption have their costs. However, the one sure thing is that China will pay a much higher cost for not reforming.

Given the current economic development model, the market will not develop further without reforms and the potential of China's reform will die in its cradle. The government must transform its roles from dominating the market to a cool-headed regulator of the market.

China's environmental problems will evolve into an environmental crisis if the economic growth model is not reformed.

China's social problems and conflicts of interest will explode without reforms. Corruption will not be reined in if China does not reform its anti-corruption systems.