CHINESE ECONOMIC ASSOCIATION (Europe/UK)
The 27th CEA (UK) and 8th CEA (Europe) ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Co-organized by
Institute of East Asian Studies (IN-EAST),
University of Duisburg-Essen

&

Confucius Institute Metropolis Ruhr
at University of Duisburg-Essen
Thursday–Saturday, September 1st–3rd, 2016
University of Duisburg-Essen
Duisburg, Germany

CHINA’S NEW WAY OF INTEGRATION WITH THE WORLD:
THE NEW SILK ROAD AND THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE WORLD ECONOMY

In recent years, China has quickly developed into a new engine for global economic growth and has become a new ascendant power in the international system. In order to uphold its development and growth momentum, the Chinese government has taken bold moves to deepen economic reforms and further integrate the country into the global division of labour. In autumn, 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping successively proposed the initiatives of the “Silk Road Economic Belt” and the “21st Century Maritime Silk Road” that are known as the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative. In 2015, with the release of the “Vision and Actions on Jointly Building ‘One Belt, One Road’”, the creation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), and the setting up of the Silk Road Fund, the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative has moved on to the stage of implementation. Furthermore, the EU and Chinese leaders issued joint statements to develop synergies between EU policies, especially the € 315 billion EU Commission Investment Plan (also known as the Juncker Plan), and China’s “One Belt, One Road” Initiative. Given the resources made available for the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative, the latter will undoubtedly have a decisive impact on the structure and future development of global economic interaction. What does the Initiative mean to the development of the involved countries and regions? What does it mean to the international order and relations between China and the world? These are just some of the questions brought forward by politicians, business leaders, and academic researchers worldwide. In search of well-founded answers to the micro and macro issues concerning the economics, finance, and politics of China’s development, and especially the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative, the main theme of the 27th Annual Conference of CEA (UK) and the 8th CEA (Europe) Conference concerns China’s new way of integration with the world whilst exploring the opportunities of the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative for the global economic system.

Several distinguished scholars have accepted our invitation to give keynote speeches at the conference:
• Justin Yifu Lin (Honorary Dean, Peking University; Former Vice President of the World Bank)
• Chong-En Bai (Chairman of the Economics Department, Tsinghua University; Member of the Monetary Policy Committee of China)
• Susan Shirk (Chair of the 21st Century China Program, University of California, San Diego; Former Deputy Secretary of State of the U.S.A.)
• Guido Tabellini (Intesa Sanpaolo Chair in Political Economics, Bocconi University)
• Fabrizio Zilibotti (Dean, University of Zurich; President of the European Economic Association)

Further features of the conference include:
• The “Second International Forum on the ‘New Silk Road’ and Sino-European Cooperation”, a roundtable co-organized by the China Center for Contemporary World Studies (CCCWS) at the International Department of the Central Committee of the CPC, and IN-EAST at the University of Duisburg-Essen. Senior government officials from China and Europe, business leaders, and renowned scholars will attend the roundtable.
• Awards for best papers submitted and presented by PhD students.
• Information corner on job opportunities.
• Social events: on Saturday, September 3rd, a guided tour to Duisburg and its environs will be offered.

Submissions of theoretical and empirical studies are welcome. Topics covered may include but are not limited to:
• The “One Belt, One Road” Initiative
• Innovation, productivity and development
• Trade, foreign direct investment, and China’s outward investment
• Logistics and transportation economics
• Culture and migration
• Globalisation and international integration
• Income distribution, education, healthcare and social welfare issues
• Environmental issues
• China’s institutions and political economy
• China’s fiscal and financial system
• Real estate, capital market and corporate governance
• Urbanisation and industrial upgrading
• Agricultural and rural development
• State-owned enterprise reforms
• Demographic change and labour market

Download the PDF File.

Publication: All papers accepted for the conference are eligible for a special issue with the Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies (JCEBS). Papers will be reviewed for JCEBS upon receipt using its normal criteria. Note that the acceptance of a paper to the conference is not a guarantee of publication by JCEBS. Selected conference papers may also have chance to be published in edited books.

Submission: For individual submissions, abstracts should be submitted through the conference website http://cea2016.org/ or sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by January 31st, 2016. The abstract should include (1) the name of the author(s), (2) paper titles and abstract, and (3) Email contacts for each paper. You are also encouraged to apply for the organization of dedicated sessions at the conference. Proposals for organized sessions are also due by January 31st, 2016 and should be sent to the same Email. The session proposal should describe the organizing theme and potential paper topics to be addressed. The person submitting the session will be considered the session organizer/chair.

Participation: Conference fee is € 250; PhD student concessional fee is € 100. The conference fee includes one-year membership of CEA and four issues of the Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies.

Conference Chair:
Yuan Li, University of Duisburg-Essen. President Elect of Chinese Economic Association (Europe/UK)
Markus Taube, University of Duisburg-Essen

Program Committee members:
Flemming Christiansen, University of Duisburg-Essen
Shuanping Dai, University of Duisburg-Essen
Liming Wang, University College Dublin
Jun Zhang, Fudan University
Jing Zhang, Nottingham University
Jinghai Zheng, University of Gothenburg

Local Organization Committee members:
Helmut Demes, University of Duisburg-Essen
Birgit Geith, University of Duisburg-Essen
Susanne Löhr, Confucius Institute Metropolis Ruhr
Liang Liu, Confucius Institute Metropolis Ruhr
Maximilian Mai, University of Duisburg-Essen
Stefanie Ridder, University of Duisburg-Essen

All information at: http://cea2016.org/