Luke Gakstatter believes that all John Deere has done in China over the past 36 years was not miss any opportunities in the fast-changing and increasingly competitive market.

The U.S. agriculture and construction machinery manufacturer plans to greatly expand its presence in China and move its cotter picker production to the world's second-largest economy.

John Deere's expansion plan in China includes a new factory for large agricultural equipment in the city of Harbin, Heilongjiang province, two new factories in the city of Tianjin, and a harvester manufacturing unit in Ningbo, Zhejiang province.

"The market in China is advancing very quickly and we as a company need to continue to get very good at moving quickly, reacting and developing and planning for that rapid change," said Gakstatter, president of John Deere China.

Gakstatter's sense of urgency was shared by Zhang Monan, a deputy research fellow with the Economic Projection Department of the State Information Center.

According to Zhang's observations, China's long-held model that built its economic success over the past three decades has been under greater pressure to transition since the onset of the global financial crisis.

Weak demand in Europe and the United States -- China's two largest trading partners -- would slow down China's economy that formerly relied on cheap labor and low-cost land to boost exports, analysts said.

To achieve steady growth, China will continue to expand domestic demand and develop the real economy to stabilize economic growth this year, according to a government work report delivered by Premier Wen Jiabao on March 5, setting the tone for policies this year.