This year's Central Economic Work Conference will open tomorrow in Beijing. The three-day event is the country’s highest economic meeting, and will review the country’s performance over the past 12 months and map out plans for the coming year. So what major issues are expected to top the agenda? And what is the outlook for 2012?

Setting out the economic roadmap for the coming 12 months. Policy makers in Beijing will sit down to hammer out China’s future direction, as the world’s economic turmoil continues. Though not heavy on the details, experts suggest next year will continue to see a proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy, with discretionary use of fine-tuning measures.

The growth of China's economy slowed to 9.1 per cent in the third quarter of this year, and its GDP growth forecast is slower in 2012 as exports decline on weakening demand from the US and Europe. Meanwhile, China’s inflation eased to 4.2% in November, marking a 13-month low in the CPI since October last year. This indicates that maintaining growth might have to be China’s top priority.

Experts say the most crucial for the next year's economic growth is how to map out a correct policy, which means the country should avoid both a hard landing and an economic bubble, to ensure balanced and sustainable growth. And in order to do that, a new approach is needed.

Geng also stresses that China should guard against trade protectionism in the midst of the worserning global economic climate, and shift from administrative quantitative tools to more market-oriented ones.