The host metropolis is already prepared for next week's APEC activities, and its residents are excitedly counting down the days until it starts, Shanghai Mayor Xu Kuangdi said on October 11.

Planning began two years ago.

The three major venues - the International Media Centre, Shanghai Science and Technology Museum and Shanghai International Convention Centre - are now ready to open.

Those high-tech venues were not built solely for APEC events and will continue to serve the public in the long run, he said.

Shanghai enjoys sound social stability and authorities have established a comprehensive security system whose reliability has passed repeated checks so as to ensure the safety of the leaders from the 21 APEC economies and the other participants.

Guided by the principle of market economy, Xu said that society, not the government, is the major investor in this event.

The public and the government teamed up to renovate roads and houses, plant trees and light up the city at night - all in an effort to beautify the city.

About 20 four-star and five-star hotels will provide accommodations for the APEC participants - an opportunity won through public bidding.

The 2,200 vehicles to be in service will be either rented from local taxi companies or borrowed for free from Mercedes-Benz and General Motors. Those companies plan to use the opportunity to enhance their public image.

Xu said that since previous APEC meetings were held in English-speaking cities, Shanghai encouraged taxi drivers, retailers and others who frequently encounter foreigners in their jobs to learn English.

More than 10,000 volunteers have passed English-speaking and etiquette tests.

There are 1,100 volunteers who can speak fluent English, and they will be assigned to accompany the leaders of APEC economies.

In the first eight months of this year, the influx of foreign investment to Shanghai increased by 38 per cent over the same period last year.

From January to August, 68 per cent of the city's foreign trade was actualized among APEC economies, Xu said.

( China Daily 10/12/2001)