The world's great minds in economics today (14 November) shared their insight with a full house of 400 audience including senior industry personnel, community leaders, government officials and academics at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s 75th Anniversary Conference.

PolyU President Professor Timothy W. Tong joined hands with Professor Robert Mundell, Nobel Laureate in Economics, Professor of Economics at Columbia University and PolyU's Honorary Doctor of Business Administration to organize the Conference, with the assistance of the School of Accounting and Finance. Themed "Stabilizing the World Economy", the Conference is one of the major celebratory events of PolyU's 75th Anniversary.

The stabilization of global economy is on the top agenda of world leaders and policy makers. The Conference therefore aims at addressing some of the pressing issues which have implications for the stabilization of the world economy, including the recovery of major economies and emerging markets, the impacts of the European debt crisis, the problems and solutions of having an Asian currency, and the role of the world currency system.

The Conference was opened by Mr John C. Tsang, Financial Secretary for the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; together with Ms Marjorie Yang Mun-tak, PolyU Council Chairman; Professor Timothy W. Tong, PolyU President; and Professor Judy Tsui, PolyU Vice President (International and Executive Education) who is the Executive Chairman of the Conference.

Addressing the ceremony, Ms Marjorie Yang extended a very warm welcome to all distinguished speakers and participants, many of whom are senior government officials, financial chiefs and renowned academics. She said, "Over the years, PolyU has built up an effective network with leaders from different disciplines which in turn helps enhance our education and research."

"We are delighted to have this opportunity to benefit from Professor Mundell and other distinguished speakers' insightful perspective and discussion on a host of critical issues affecting the world economy," she added.

The Conference began with the keynote speech by Professor Robert Mundell who shared his views on "Risk Factors in the World Economy and the Exchange Rate System" and set the tone for the panel discussion session that followed. The afternoon session started by another keynote speaker Mr Haruhiko Kuroda, President of Asian Development Bank, who spoke on "What Could Asia Do in the Light of the Situation Created by Euro Crisis?".

Local and international distinguished speakers have also been invited to exchange their ideas and experiences on various issues in relation to the stabilization of global economy during the panel discussion sessions. They included:

• Professor Olivier Blanchard, Economic Counsellor and Director of Research Department, International Monetary Fund
• Professor Domingo Cavallo, Senior Fellow, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University; Former Minister of Economy, Argentina
• Dr Jacob A. Frenkel, Chairman, JPMorgan Chase International; Chairman of Board of Trustees, Group of Thirty; Former Governor, Bank of Israel
• Professor Herbert Grubel, Professor of Economics (Emeritus), Simon Fraser University; Senior Fellow, The Fraser Institute
• Professor Lawrence Lau, Ralph and Claire Landau Professor of Economics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
• Professor Ronald McKinnon, William D. Eberle Professor of Economics (Emeritus), Stanford University
• Dr Xiang Songzuo, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, International Monetary Institute, Renmin University of China

In addition, PolyU students were given precious opportunity to join the Conference as ambassadors to interact with industry leaders and to learn from their valuable experiences.

For details of the Conference, please visit the official website at URL: http://www.polyu.edu.hk/75thanniversaryconference/index.html

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About Professor Robert Mundell

Professor Robert Mundell was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for his works on optimum currency areas and the development of the international macroeconomic model in 1999. He has been Professor of Economics at Columbia University since 1974 and has authored numerous works and articles on economic theory of international economics. He prepared one of the first plans for common currency in Europe and since then, he is known as the "Father of euro". He has formulated a standard international macroeconomics model and has pioneered the theory of the monetary and fiscal policy mix, of inflation and interest, and the monetary approach to the balance of payments. In recognition of his significant contribution, Professor Robert Mundell was conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Business Administration by PolyU in 2009.