XIAMEN - To overcome the complicated global economic woes, China's economy is in dire need of accelerating the process of transformation, said Li Yang, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), Sept 7 at the 15th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) in the southeastern coastal city of Xiamen.

As the world's economic recovery has a long journey to go, China's economic transformation should be stepped up in various areas, according to Li.

Emerging opportunities

Weak confidence in Europe and the United States appears to have hardened this year as fears of a fresh crisis loom over sovereign debt problems. The global economy has stepped into a period featuring long-term fluctuation and slow growth, according to Li's statement at the 2011 Capital Forum, part of the CIFIT.

Since the international economic crisis was touched off in August 2007 by the US subprime mortgage crisis, the global economy development has stepped into a new period, Li said.

Just as a coin has two sides, the current crisis has brought about opportunities, he added.

"Developed countries face obstacles on their way to further development, while emerging economies are expected to play more important roles in the future," the scholar said.

To seize the opportunity, those emerging economies, including China, must accelerate their pace of transformation, Li said.

Transformation in various aspects

Despite the rapid growth of China's economy over the past three decades, China has developed with great dependence on the old world economic structure oriented by developed countries.

To get rid of the dependence and meet the pace of fast economic expansion, China has to realize economic transformation in various aspects, such as scientific innovation, service industry, financial reform and modernized agriculture.

In addition, China is obliged to participate in the formulation of rules that govern international trade and investment in order to have a say amid increasingly fierce international competition, Li said.

The annual CIFIT in September has been held in the southeastern city of Xiamen since 1997. This year's themes, "Introducing FDI" and "Going Global," the fair serves as a popular platform for promoting bilateral trade and investment between Chinese and overseas investors, and has played a significant role in international investment and trade.