A world-leading business research organization has pledged to launch a new center in China soon.

The Conference Board, established nearly 100 years ago in the United States, wants to improve its understanding of China's economic and business developments and the country's role in global economic and business trends.

The proposed China Center for Economics and Business is expected to work with research partners in China. It will provide information to the government and enterprises in raising their understanding of economic and enterprise issues both within China and in a global context.

The center's advisory board is co-chaired by Paul Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve of the United States, and Chen Yuan, governor of the China Development Bank, and is comprised of several eminent economists.

The center is funded by its 10 founding company members and will be supported by the China Development Bank.

Gail D. Fosler, executive vice-president and chief economist of the Conference Board, said on Thursday in Beijing that they are co-operating with some Chinese organizations on economic research programs.

For instance, the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, has an obvious strong interest from the perspective of what is happening in China's economy and enterprise productivity, while co-operation with the China Banking Regulatory Commission focuses on corporate governance and leading economic indicators.

Fosler also expressed her hope that other Chinese companies would participate in their economic research programs.

Bart Van Ark, director of International Economic Research at the Conference Board, said that while China has a fast-growing economy, so did India and some countries in Eastern Europe.

To remain competitive in the global market, Ark suggested China pay more attention to the skills of its labor force, increase the share of the service industry in its economy, and emphasize not only the productivity of the manufacturing industry but also the service industry, such as banking and finance.

Raising the quality of economic growth requires not only the input of capital and machinery, but also a skilled labor force and a social environment for business development, he said.

Richard E. Cavanagh, president and chief executive officer of the Conference Board, said that in the post-industrialized world economy, the best enterprises are those that find new ways of doing business and launch new products.

(China Daily April 22, 2006)