City government seeems hesitant to take role as a pioneer of policy for the nation

Whether Shanghai will become a new world financial center will greatly depend on how creative the city government can be with the liberties given it by the central government.

Part of the challenge is that Shanghai was not a pioneer in China's post-1970s reform. But the establishment of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone last year put it at the forefront of the nation's financial overhaul.