China's pending entry into the World Trade Organization has put urgent demands on domestic companies to enhance international competitiveness, she noted.

"We will build a sound environment to enhance the management ability of Chinese business executives to help them meet the challenges of globalization," the deputy director said at the eighth national forum for Chinese business executives, which opened yesterday in the city.

More than 800 company executives from across the country attended the two-day conference, which is part of the annual activities for "National Business Executives' Day."

Founded in 1995 and held on April 21 each year, the group's goal is to enhance the social position and quality of the country's business executives.

This year's conference was built around the theme "the challenge and opportunities of globalization for Chinese enterprises." Senior government officials and the country's foremost business executives, including Shanghai Mayor Xu Kuangdi and Haier Chief Executive Officer Zhang Ruimin, spoke at the conference.

The speakers outlined the major challenges domestic companies and their executives must overcome, including:

* An immature market-oriented economic and industrial complex;

* An absence of an effective innovation system;

* A lack of global competitiveness and development strategy; and

* A lack of understanding of international trade and investment mechanisms and policies.

"If you don't want to be swallowed by global rivals, you must try your best to improve your products and systems to become integrated into the global market," said Haier's Zhang.

China Enterprise Community Chairman Chen Jinhua advised domestic business executives to figure out ways to overcome limitations and devote the required resources to create globally renowned brands.

"Domestic companies should be bold in developing multinational operations, develop capital operations and perfect management systems," said Chen.

"Grab the opportunities economic globalization presents and attach great importance to technology and innovative management systems," he said.

(Eastday.com 04/23/2001)