Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and senior executives from General Motors, Microsoft, Intel and 60-odd major multinationals are attending the forum.

Representatives from Wahaha, Jianlibao and over 100 other domestic firms as well as economists and scholars are also among the participants.

The forum will discuss issues such as changes in China's economic development and foreign trade after it joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) and potential hot points in the Chinese economy and investment opportunities for multinationals.

The participants will also concentrate on economic development strategies for Chaohu as a processing base for Shanghai and Nanjing and as a national production base of green food.

The city plans to recruit some of the participants as their senior economic advisers, and has also prepared 80 projects for business invitation during the forum.

It is even ready to offer a piece of its most scenic land for the CEOs to build their houses, according to city officials.

The forum is jointly sponsored by the government of Chaohu city and the Asia-Pacific CEO Association.

Analysts noticed that the forum is coming on the close heels of the Fortune Forum in Hong Kong and the Beijing International Week of Hi-Tech, both of which were also actively attended by the world 's leading multinationals.

(Xinhua 05/19/2001)