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Abounding murmurs about a hard landing for the Chinese economy seem to have fallen on deaf ears in Kunshan, an east China city looking to change its economic development mode.
Skyscrapers tower over a 50-square-kilometer economic development zone in the city near Shanghai, and workers are busy constructing the Huaqiao International Service Business Park, an area that will specialize in modern services and aims to become a leader in its field in China.
Although the project is unfinished, many well-known companies such as France's Capgemini and New York-listed Genpact have been enticed to set up their future businesses here due to Kunshan's geographical advantage of its proximity to Shanghai and its relatively lower operation costs.
Traditionally, Kunshan has been a major base for processing trade in China, where more than half of the world's laptops were produced.
But in recent years, its edges in the manufacturing sector have waned as global giants like Apple move production lines inland, where production costs are even lower.
To continue its past glory, the city has now begun to tread new waters for future economic development. It aims to upgrade its industrial structure by developing service sectors such as modern logistics, business and trade exhibitions, finance and e-commerce, according to the local government.
After more than three decades of opening-up and reforms, Kunshan has witnessed astounding growth, improved livelihoods and more coordinated development between urban areas and the countryside, said Guan Aiguo, chief of the Kunshan Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China.
"Our goal is to construct a modern industrial structure that will be based on advanced manufacturing, supported by modern service sectors and feature advanced urban agriculture in Kunshan," Guan said.
Zhang Zhenyue, deputy director of the Huaqiao Economic Development Zone, said that the zone's development blueprint involves making it an outsourcing service base, a regional base for company headquarters and a cooperation zone for businesses across the Taiwan Strait.
The Kunshan story is a near-reflection of China's economy at large. After more than 30 years of development, the country has become the world's second largest economy and the leading exporter.
However, over-reliance on exports, weak consumption and low-end manufacturing are becoming stumbling blocks on the nation's path to sustainable development.
After enduring the recent global financial crisis, China has recognized the significance of economic restructuring, industrial upgrading and expanding domestic demand in promoting sustainable growth.
The country's top leadership also stressed the importance of expanding domestic demand late last year by further improving people's livelihoods and stepping up the development of the tertiary industry.
Chen Shunlang, a businessman from Taiwan, said that the mainland market is like a "bottomless well" with enormous potential. "China is undergoing big changes with more high-level needs. More and more cities are constructing subways and upgrading infrastructure that require intelligence-embedded equipment."
"Sales revenues at our company grew 22 percent to 220 million U.S. dollars last year. Despite the uncertainty of the macro-economic situation this year, we still aim for 20-percent growth," said Chen, who works for Advantech, a hi-tech firm of large and medium-sized computers and sensors.
"We don't think the Chinese economy will see great rises or falls. What's noteworthy is that the whole of China now emphasizes scientific and technological innovations," he said. "We believe that our company will continue to see an annual growth rate of 20 percent in the coming ten years in China."
Meanwhile, technological pursuits can be seen in another case. As the leading maker of diesel engines and heavy-duty trucks in China, Weichai Holdings Group Co. produces around half of the world's heavy-duty trucks. On Jan. 10, the state-owned company agreed to acquire a 75-percent stake for 374 million euros in Italy's Ferretti Group, the world's largest yacht builder.
"From making heavy-duty trucks to luxury yachts, we have diversified our products, and by doing so, we can also learn from globally advanced technologies and make our own innovations based on our learning," said Wang Yong, the company's deputy general manager.
Government data showed that in 2011, domestic demand contributed nearly 52 percent to the nation's economic growth, with the ratio up 10 percentage points compared with that in 2010, showing that domestic demand is playing a growing role in driving the economy.
The nation's GDP grew 9.2 percent in 2011, slowing from 10.4 percent in 2010. Analysts say the slowdown is largely the result of internal restructuring and inflation control. They also believe that China's major concerns no longer focus solely on speed, but on quality and cost-effectiveness.
Zhang Qingwei, governor of Hebei Province, said that upgrading the consumption structure and industrial structure will release enormous demand, which itself will become the internal force driving future growth during the country's urbanization and industrialization processes.
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