On January 1, 2010, China and the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) finally, formally launched a China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) that encompasses nearly two billion people engaged in trade worth some $200 billion. For China the agreement is a way of securing supplies of raw materials, while the ASEAN countries hope the agreement will open opportunities in China's huge domestic market. When CAFTA  was first signed in November 2002, Beijing promised that Southeast Asia would reap an “early harvest” of its benefits. Yet the Southeast Asian response to CAFTA in the agreement’s first year has been less than enthusiastic, especially in the Philippines and Indonesia. Is CAFTA a bonanza? A blunder? Something in between? Prof. Mendoza will assess the agreement, its implementation, and the implications for China’s role and image in Southeast Asia going forward.

Amado M. Mendoza, Jr. is a leading policy scholar in the Philippines, where he also serves as the treasurer of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ESCR) Asia, Inc., an NGO dedicated to the promotion of socio-economic and cultural rights. He is the Philippines’ lead contributor to the soon-to-be-released 2010 Global Integrity Report on governance and corruption. Other subjects of his current research include Asian regional integration; Asian summitry and economic crisis management; Philippine economic diplomacy; and China-Taiwan relations within a regional context. In addition to his academic career, he has a background in journalism, banking, and development.

China is on the move. An ascendant middle class with increasing amounts of disposable income and lesiure time is creating a massive consumer market. Tourism is one of the fastest growing segments, fueled by travel within China and by the tens of millions of Chinese travelling overseas.

Most of these consumers are online, and travel search sites like Qunar.com are a popular resource for them to get the best deals.

SPRIE is pleased to welcome Fritz Demopoulos, CEO of Qunar, to share his insights into China's travel market, and his frontline experience as an online entrepreneur in China.

Fritz Demopoulos has been involved in the Chinese internet and media industries for over a decade. As Founder and CEO of Qunar, Fritz had grown the company from a start-up to an industry leader with over 35 million monthly unique visitors. Qunar--which means "where are you going?" in Mandarin--is venture-backed by Tenaya Capital, Mayfield, GSR and Granite Global Ventures.

Prior to Qunar, Fritz was the SVP of Business Development at Netease.com (Nasdaq: NTES), one of China's leading internet portals and online game companies. Fritz was also the CEO and Cofounder of sports portal Shawei.com, venture backed by Intel, IDG and Softbank. Shawei was acquired by Tom.com in 2000.

Fritz began his career in China with The News Corporation Limited where he was involved with a range of News Corp companies including ChinaByte, a joint venture between News Corp and People's Daily. Based in Beijing, Fritz is a native of Los Angeles and was educated at UCLA.