If China succeeds in maintaining its high growth rate, it will become one of the world’s largest markets in the early 21st century. Success would mean dramatically rising incomes and falling levels of absolute poverty. China’s demand for new products, technologies, and services would also benefit the world economy. Success is not guaranteed. China still must tackle problems from the past and the new challenges of rapid transition.

• Can the rapid growth of the last two decades be maintained for the next two decades?
• What are the major obstacles to the realization of China’s growth potential, and how can the government make the promise of the 21st century a reality?
• What are the implications for the international community of an emerging China, and how can the international community help China succeed?

Rapid economic growth is straining China’s infrastructure. Peak power demand exceeds supply in many areas, while congested roads, railways, and waterways slow transportation and increase costs.

• How can China develop mechanisms to convert its ample domestic savings into long-term finance for infrastructure?
• Have the experiments in BOT investments, though still in early stages, provided a basis for government and investors to expand foreign participation?
• For foreign investors, what policies require immediate attention to facilitate their participation in power and transport projects, especially in the poorer interior regions?

The rapid economic growth that has lifted millions out of poverty also has damaged the environment. The government has adopted laws protecting the environment in recent years, and enforcement has improved. But Chinese cities are still heavily polluted.

• Can China grow rapidly over the next two decades — and at the same time improve its environment?
• As China moves to a market economy, what are the most important policy initiatives that will ensure that market forces benefit — rather than destroy — the environment?
• Will trade, international investment, and technological flows foster environmental improvement?

In May 1998, the European Union is expected to decide which of its 15 member countries are qualified to participate in Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) from the beginning of 1999.

• How will monetary and fiscal policies be conducted in the monetary union?
• What issues are the financial markets focusing on in the run up to EMU, and how will the introduction of the Euro affect financial markets?
• What are the implications of EMU for other countries and for the management of the international monetary system?

China's transition has brought remarkable benefits to the low-income segment of its society. Rising incomes have lifted some 200 million people out of poverty, while investments in health services have lifted the population’s health status well above that of other countries with similar per capita income. But the old state-enterprise and community-based mechanisms of providing household security are withering with the advance of market forces.

• As the old system of health care provision breaks down, what changes are necessary to improve China’s first rate provision of broad-based healthcare in cities and the countryside?
• With the emergence of municipal pension systems, what regulatory changes are needed to ensure viability, investment safety, and return on investment?
• Is there a role for fund managers in the emerging pension system?

China’s financial markets, though still in their incipient stages, hold enormous promise to mobilize domestic and foreign resources for investment in China. But their development is constrained by the absence of several critical factors: the absence of a time-proven rating system, a method of oversight, and a clear legal framework. Meanwhile, Hong Kong financial markets have become a major source of capital for companies worldwide, including “red chip” issues from China.

• How can China develop its domestic markets to provide long-term financing to Chinese companies and the government, perhaps including municipalities?
• How can China attract institutional investors to provide a steady source of long-term finance for its capital markets?
• How can mainland Chinese companies make better use of Hong Kong’s markets to finance their investments?

Integrating Hong Kong into Chinese economic life has already begun in many respects. Cross-border trade has been a source of growth for both economies, and financial flows have grown in recent years to record heights.

• What are the financial policies that will govern Hong Kong as a special administrative region, and will these lead to greater financial integration with the mainland?
• How can the expertise available in Hong Kong benefit China’s transition to a market-based financial system?
• What are the policies needed to maintain Hong Kong’s preeminence as a financial center and simultaneously facilitate Shanghai’s emergence?

Acutely aware of the devastation of famine, Chinese leaders have given a high priority to food production and supply. Reforms launched in the late 1970s paid enormous dividends by increasing agricultural productivity, expanding grain supplies, and diversifying agriculture.

• Can productivity increases continue or are they approaching a natural ceiling?
• Will China become a major importer of grains in the next two decades — to the point of reversing the long-term decline of real prices of food in world markets?
• What domestic policies and international efforts could help ensure a reliable food supply in China?

The World Bank Group lends approximately US$ 22 billion a year, presenting enormous business opportunities for member countries.

• What are the regional and sectoral breakdowns for future Bank lending?
• What goods and services are to be procured by borrowers?
• How and where does the Bank promote privatization and private investment in infrastructure?
• What procurement policies and procedures apply to the acquisition of goods and services?
• What are the best sources of information on business?

Introduction	James D. Wolfensohn, President, World Bank Group
Keynote Speaker	Zhu Rongji, Vice Premier of the State Council of The People's Republic of China