A law firm with the headquarters in Washington DC, has opened an office in Shanghai.

It is the third representative office the American law firm, Hogan and Hartson, has ever established in Asia. The other two are in Tokyo of Japan and Beijing.

Warren Gorrell, chairman of the firm, said he decided to open the new branch because one-third of the Beijing office's business came from the Yangtze River Delta.

As China becomes one of the engines of the global economic growth, Shanghai's central status in the international economy and finance is even more evident. The river delta, with Shanghai as the center, has become the focus of multinational's investment in China.

Unlike the office in Beijing, which gives priority to businesses involved in with the government, the Shanghai branch will focus strictly on business affairs. The new office will deal with topics ranging from finance, mergers and acquisition, venture capital to trading of capital market, said Gorrell.

Steven Robinson, chief representative of Hogan and Jartson Shanghai Office, said China has one of the highest inflow of foreign direct investment in the world.

In compliance with its commitments to the World Trade Organization (WTO), China will open more of its markets to investors from overseas by the end of this year. These fields include logistics, telecom, retailing and wholesale, advertising, insurance, securities. This means that organizations of intermediary services, such as law firms, will naturally be provided with greater business opportunities, acknowledged Robinson.

So far, overseas law firms have established more than 80 business offices in Shanghai.