BEIJING -- Abounding murmurs about a hard landing for the Chinese economy seem to have fallen on deaf ears in Kunshan, an east China city looking to change its economic development mode.

Skyscrapers tower over a 50-square-kilometer economic development zone in the city near Shanghai, and workers are busy constructing the Huaqiao International Service Business Park, an area that will specialize in modern services and aims to become a leader in its field in China.

Although the project is unfinished, many well-known companies such as France's Capgemini and New York-listed Genpact have been enticed to set up their future businesses here due to Kunshan's geographical advantage of its proximity to Shanghai and its relatively lower operation costs.

Traditionally, Kunshan has been a major base for processing trade in China, where more than half of the world's laptops were produced.

But in recent years, its edges in the manufacturing sector have waned as global giants like Apple move production lines inland, where production costs are even lower.

To continue its past glory, the city has now begun to tread new waters for future economic development. It aims to upgrade its industrial structure by developing service sectors such as modern logistics, business and trade exhibitions, finance and e-commerce, according to the local government.

After more than three decades of opening-up and reforms, Kunshan has witnessed astounding growth, improved livelihoods and more coordinated development between urban areas and the countryside, said Guan Aiguo, chief of the Kunshan Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China.

"Our goal is to construct a modern industrial structure that will be based on advanced manufacturing, supported by modern service sectors and feature advanced urban agriculture in Kunshan," Guan said.

Zhang Zhenyue, deputy director of the Huaqiao Economic Development Zone, said that the zone's development blueprint involves making it an outsourcing service base, a regional base for company headquarters and a cooperation zone for businesses across the Taiwan Strait.

The Kunshan story is a near-reflection of China's economy at large. After more than 30 years of development, the country has become the world's second largest economy and the leading exporter.

However, over-reliance on exports, weak consumption and low-end manufacturing are becoming stumbling blocks on the nation's path to sustainable development.

After enduring the recent global financial crisis, China has recognized the significance of economic restructuring, industrial upgrading and expanding domestic demand in promoting sustainable growth.

The country's top leadership also stressed the importance of expanding domestic demand late last year by further improving people's livelihoods and stepping up the development of the tertiary industry.