Guangdong will reap the greatest benefit of any province from China's entry to the WTO and achieve 'modernisation' five years ahead of schedule, a top economist has predicted.
Niu Wenyuan, of Beijing's Academy of Sciences, which has just released a 'Strategies on China's Sustained Development' report, expects Guangdong to have caught up with developed countries by 2016.
China joined the World Trade Organisation in December.
Dr Niu carried out research last year in which he suggested Guangdong would reach that level by 2021, following Shanghai in 2015 and Beijing in 2018.
He defined 'modernisation' as a level of economic development, social progress, living standard and sustained development similar to 'a medium-level developed country'.
But an increase in foreign trade and higher economic growth following China's WTO entry would speed up the process in Guangdong by five years, Dr Niu told Guangzhou's Southern Metropolis News.
Guangdong has set a goal of the booming Pearl River Delta region reaching 'modernisation' by 2010 and Shenzhen by 2005.