The 2013 Fortune Global Forum will be held in Chengdu, Sichuan province, in China’s southwest. This is the twelfth session of the meeting, one of the world’s most prominent financial conferences.

It will also be the fourth time for the forum to be held in China and the first time for it to leave China’s more highly developed and prosperous east coast area.

The Fortune Global Forum was established in 1995 and has remained acutely aware of the world’s economic condition. It is considered by some to provide the clearest, most direct view of global economic trends.

The 1999 session was held in Shanghai, the 2001 session in Hong Kong, and the 2005 in Beijing, so it has been a close witness to 10 of the most important years of China’s economic boom. Chengdu will be able to follow in the footsteps of these three Chinese cities while giving the forum a different perspective.

Why Chengdu? Those responsible for the forum have explained that the city is a powerhouse of western development and has great economic and innovative potential and a wealth of cultural features, not to mention its vast experience with international conferences. Throw in its administrative and other services and there are plenty of reasons to choose Chengdu.