BEIJING - Justin Yifu Lin, chief economist and senior vice president of the World Bank, said here on Sunday that China's economy is doing well.

Speaking at a forum with two Nobel Prize winning economists in Beijing, Lin praised China's economic policies as "visionary" while the three economists talked about the challenges ahead.

"We admire the Chinese economy. But GDP is not all being directed for people's happiness." Roger Myerson, a professor with the University of Chicago and a Nobel Prize winner, said.

The Chinese economy needs increased labor income and welfare to continue its rapid development, Myerson added.

A spate of strikes and worker suicides hit the manufacturing hub of Guangdong in south China beginning in May, as workers demanded higher pay.

Lin also called for government support in encouraging Chinese companies to become industrial "first movers". "As a first mover, you can form the pattern," he said.