Their combined ages totaled more than 10,000 years, the number that ancient Chinese used to equate with "being immortal."

All the men were dressed in a traditional Chinese-style brown silk coat while the women wore red. Their clothing was presented by the local government.

He Zhaolin, aged 96, greeted other guests in a robust and energetic manner at the start of the dinner. "I'm still a young boy compared with those 100-year-olds," he joked.

Aged 105, Lu Cuiying was the oldest of the 100. She has seen changes in the Chinese society from the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China, then to the People's Republic of China.

"There were sufferings in the past and now I am living a happy life," she said.

Ding Yuzhen brought the good news that she had just become a member of the Communist Party of China (CPC), probably its oldest member, on Oct. 20.

"It is peaceful and stable in our country. People no longer suffer hunger and poverty as I did. I am really happy," Ding said.

The 100 people were selected from 837 people aged above 95 in the city.

Rugao has a population of 1.45 million, of whom 172 are older than 100, another 170 are aged 99, and more than 4,000 are older than 90.

According to the United Nations, an area is recognised for the longevity of its residents if it has at least 75 people aged above 100 for every one million of the population. The ratio in Rugao is more than twice that.

About 1,000 experts from at home and abroad were present at a meeting in Rugao on Monday trying to figure out what makes people live longer in a region with rapid economic growth.

The city lies on the lower reaches of China's longest river, the Yangtze, 200 kilometers from Shanghai, China's biggest city and industrial center.

Rugao's GDP reached 7.78 billion yuan last year and about 300 foreign-funded companies have set up business here.

Almost all the places known for longevity in the world are remote, mountainous and less developed.

China has 17,000 people older than 100 and of the six Chinese cities with the most centenarians, Rugao is the only one located in a low-lying area and economically-developed region.

"According to a survey we did recently of long-lived people, most of them don't smoke and they drink a little," said Chen Fei, an expert from Rugao. "Most of them drink a kind of local spirits made from rice."

They also had regular and healthy eating and sleeping habits and enjoyed good family relationships, he added.

Some experts also noted that the favorable social environment here contributed to living longer.

The local government and communities have long encouraged respect for old people. This year, the government announced six new policies including granting a monthly subsidy to each centenarian and providing them with a free health care service.

However, more research was needed to establish the exact reasons for Rugao residents' longevity, experts said.

(Xinhua News Agency October 30, 2002)