When the 13th Annual Academic Conference on WTO and China opened in Beijing, on Dec 18, on hand to address the gathering was Long Guoqiang, director-general of the General Office of the Development Research Center of the State Council (DRC), who spoke on "China's Opening-up Strategy in the 'New Normal' of Slower Growth", where he analyzed the new environment, opportunities, and challenges confronted in China against a backdrop of slowing growth.

Long also came up with the goals and highlights for China's current opening-up effort, adding that it is happening during a period when the global economy is recovering from the financial crisis, new foreign trade rules are being created, and China's competitive advantages are changing. He went on to say that China needs to take advantage of its low cost of R&D, global infrastructure construction, and its attraction for top industries and personnel to face various challenges such as a changing labor structure. It also needs to create a favorable way to get involved in global governance, with the emphasis on adjusting its investment management to create a good environment for rising up and accelerating its upgrades through external markets and resources. Long concluded by saying that foreign trade reforms are needed for a new, more open economic system, as well as economic system reforms.