While the Chinese Government has pledged to protect the rights of foreign investors, especially in regards to intellectual property, individual spending power unleashed by a consumption-driven growth model will also bring opportunities to foreign companies.

The nation is still urbanizing and pension reform is coming, said Wang Jianlin, Chairman of the real estate giant Dalian Wanda Group based in northeast China. "The Chinese moving into the city will need homes and jobs, and they will go to movies and restaurants."

"The phenomenal growth of China's film market has been invaluable for the DreamWorks brand," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, Co-founder, Director and CEO of DreamWorks Animation, which produced the Kung Fu Panda movies. "We are ambitious to see if we could expand beyond producing in the United States a Chinese-themed film every three or four years to become a China-based family brand that regularly creates entertainment in China for China," said Katzenberg.

China's urbanization drive will also increase demands on the healthcare system. "As people move up the economic ladder, their demand for healthcare increases," said Alex Gorsky, Chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

"China's vibrant economy is producing strong growth, resulting in a rising population of the middle class," said Serwer. He estimated the nation's middle class population will reach 500 million in 12 years.

Accompanying the growing middle class is a spending spree.

Francois-Henri Pinault, CEO of the French luxury group Kering (formerly PPR), said that his company's brands, including Gucci, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga and Stella McCartney, are increasingly turning to China as a testing ground for new ideas in apparel and accessories. Gucci only had five stores in China in 2005, now it has 71.

Those Chinese traveling abroad to shop has been considered one of the most promising markets by Angela Ahrendts, CEO of luxury clothing company Burberry Group. "In 2013, 100 million Chinese will travel outside their country, and they will spend 10 times more than they spend in China." To capitalize on this trend, Ahrendts has outfitted Burberry shops in strategic markets with Mandarin-speaking sales clerks.

Official statistics show Chinese tourists are expected to make 400 million trips overseas in the next five years.

Chinese tourism is the biggest single factor driving Starwood's growth, not only in China but also in the rest of the world, said Frits van Paasschen, CEO of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide.

Sustainability matters

"The key thing [for China] to focus on is long-term prosperity," said Paulson. "It takes a different growth model, different environmental practices and different approaches. It's really more important than 7 percent or 7.5 percent [of GDP growth]."

To sustain economic growth, energy supplies must be secured. "But if we just focus on energy security without addressing climate change and environmental degradation, we won't find the right solution," said Fu Chengyu, Chairman of Sinopec, China's oil conglomerate.

Currently, the efficiency in utilizing all kinds of resources in China is relatively low. China consumes about three times more energy than Europe. If the country improves energy efficiency, then it can achieve two thirds of its energy savings while delivering the same GDP growth rate, said Fu.

China's energy structure, with 70 percent of energy consumption being coal-based or coal-derived, will remain basically unchanged in the coming 20 to 30 years. In this context, "our responsibility lies in how to deliver clean coal, how to deliver clean coal-based energy, and how to convert coal into other energy sources in a clean manner," Fu said.

Urbanization and the development of west China will bring enormous opportunities as well as pressure on the environment. The urban environment may deteriorate as the population in cities grows. Local governments in the less developed western region may turn to heavy-pollution industries transferred from the east to seek fast growth.

"When it comes to the environment, you need to have laws, and you need to enforce them," Paulson said, "But it's pretty hard to do at the local level when local leaders are focused on driving growth."

Slowing down the economy and driving reforms, getting more clean fuel in automobiles and getting inefficient coal off the grid are things that must happen in China, said Jeffrey Immelt, Chairman and CEO of GE.

"When both the national government and the provincial governments put their mind on something, this country has the ability to move at scale," he said.

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