It is widely believed that the new regional plan for the Yangtze River Delta, approved by the State Council this May, will be a boon to the region. What is your opinion?

The plan has offered guidance on the positioning of the region in the context of globalization and national development.

The plan states that the region will be developed into China's strongest economic region, which means that the economic status of the region will escalate to new heights.

The integration of the region was officially put forward in the plan after 10 years of advocacy, thus ensuring its effectiveness.

The plan says that the Yangtze River Delta will be developed into a key international gateway for the Asia-Pacific region, and an important global center for modern industry.

The Yangtze River Delta's advantageous location, excellent natural resources and solid economic foundation has made it one of the country's most economically competitive regions. What do you think is the source of its competitiveness?

Local governments all vied to develop for survival; mergers and acquisitions played a vital role in the integration of the whole region and promoted the appropriate allocation of product factors.

For example, after Shanghai-based SAIC Motors acquired another auto company in Yangzhou in 2003, the division of work between the two companies was reassigned. The company's research and development centers were combined into one in Shanghai and production in Shanghai was shuttled to Yangzhou.

Development modes based on economic regions have become a leading trend in world economics. What lessons and experiences can the region learn from its foreign counterparts?

An economic region must have a core city like Shanghai. Before launching other economic regions, the government should make efforts to establish core cities with strong modern industries and services. Looking back to history, government assistance always helps quite a bit. A good example would be the economic development of Nevada in the United States.

What are the biggest challenges to the region's development?

In my view, the biggest problem lies in integration. The integration of infrastructure such as highways, railways and bridges linking these cities always comes much easier than soft integration.