A glaring discrepancy has emerged between the career ambitions of Chinese female teenagers and their Japanese counterparts, according to a survey published on Tuesday by a leading Japanese think tank.

The top five desired careers among Chinese female teens aged 16-19 include president or chief executive of a company, senior management or manager, or teacher. In comparison, the top-five list for Japanese teens include housewife, flight attendant and child-care worker.

?Against a backdrop of doubts about the future from a protracted recession, Japanese youths have a very strong desire for stability,? said the report, which was compiled by the Hakuhodo Institute of Life and Living. ?In contrast, young Chinese want to move up in the world.?

The survey was conducted among 200 young men and women in Shanghai and the greater Tokyo area respectively this summer.

Prominent economists have noted that women are Japan?s most underutilised resource. A recent Goldman Sachs report said: ?If Japanese female participation rates rose to levels currently seen in the US, this would add 2.6m people to the workforce, raising Japan?s trend GDP growth rate from 1.2 per cent to 1.5 per cent over the next two decades.?

Though there have been several high-profile female chief executive appointments in Japan this year, including Tomoyo Nonaka as the CEO of Sanyo, the consumer electronics group, and Fumiko Hayashi as the president of Daiei, one of Japan?s leading retailers, women are still largely absent from top management positions and boardrooms.