Speech by the Mayor
There is a great city surrounded by the Yangtze and the Jailing River; this is the City of Chongqing arising on the confluence of the 2 rivers.
Chongqing has a 3,000-year long history, a trading port opened for 100 years, and used to be a temporary capital during the War; Large scale constructions were carried out here after the founding of new China; rapid progress has been made in its economic development since China's reform and opening up. All these factors have played a good foundation for the city and have facilitated Chongqing to become an important industrial and commercial city in West China.
The variety of strategic opportunities over the recent years has prompted Chongqing to move a big step forward in respect of economic growth, infrastructure completeness, manufacturing capability enhancement and continued improvement to investment environment which provides tremendous business opportunities, being a typical example of China's high growth in a fast and healthy manner.
At present Chongqing is endeavoring to build itself into the economic center of the upper reaches of the Yangtze; and is focusing on a modern service industry represented by commerce, logistics, finance, science, education, culture, telecom and information services, as well as on a new manufacturing industry represented by automobile , motorcycle, machinery, high-tech oriented and resources based productions.
This is a piece of hot land where investors from home and abroad are welcomed to plant a seed and you will be assured to gain what you have planted.
We are most sincere in our invitation to business players at home and abroad to give an eye to Chongqing or set your foot in Chongqing for joint development and mutual benefit on a win-win basis.
I. Survey
(i) Geographic Location
Chongqing is located in the connecting zone between Qingzang Plateau and the Plain of middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River. The junction area of Eastern China and Western China, in the Three-Gorges Reservoir area to the upper reaches of Yangtze River and southeast area of Sichuan basin. It lies between 150 º 17'-110 º 11'E, 28 º 10'-32 º 13'N, it stretches 470 kilometers from east to west, 450 kilometers from north to south, and covers an area of 82,403 square kilometer, the city face the Hubei province, it connects with Hunan province to the west, Guizhou province to the north, Luzhou city, Neijiang city and Suining to the east, Guang'an area, Dachuan area of Sichuan province and Shanxi province to the south.
(ii) Climate
The climate of Chongqing is Middle-Asia subtropical zone humid monsoon climate, its annual rainfall is above 1,000mm.The climate in Chongqing features hot in summer, warm in winter, long frost free season, plenty of rain fall, wet and cloudy, etc. The average annual temperature is 16-18 ºC , rich mean annual rain fall, which is 1,000 - 1,350mm in most area, rainy season is mainly from May to September, shares 70% of total annual rain fall.
(iii) Population and Nationalities
By the end of 2005, the permanent population of Chongqing is 27.98 million, The population in town is 12.6595 million, The urbanization reaches to 45.2%.
The main nationality of Chongqing is the Han nationality, besides, there are 49 other nationalities: Tujia nationality, Miao nationality, Hui nationality, Man nationality, Yi nationality. The population of minorities is 1.75 million, among which the population of Tujia nationality is 1.13million, the next is Miao nationality, the population is about 520 thousand. It is mainly distributed in the five nationality autonomous counties of southeast of Chongqing and around the Fulin area.
(iv) Culture
1. Food culture
People in Chongqing are accustom to spicy and is willing in creating new meals and it is not stick to one pattern in the material using. Compare with Sichuan food in Chengdu city, the Sichuan food in Chongqing is not so exquisite as the former, but carries on more imagination. The most famous one is Chongqing hotpot. Chongqing is the birth place of hotpot. Chongqing hotpot is called spicy hotpot, Maodu hotpot. Now Chongqing hotpot is still innovating and improved into specialized food style.
2. Wharf culture
Chongqing has long been the waterway transportation hub to the upper reaches of Yangtze River, there are many wharfs along the bank of river. Merchant Ships shuttle frequently, passengers come and go. The city civilization of middle Sichuan, southwest of China and all the Yangtze River Valley mingles here. And the unique pop culture of the city. All that shapes the wharf culture. The wharf culture mostly include dialect art and teahouse art.
(v) Infrastructures and Transportation
Depends on the "gold water way", Chongqing has long been the important junction of Southwest China, and now Chongqing has formed the comprehensive transportation network which integrates the railway, expressway, aviation, navigation and pipeline Transportation. It becomes the biggest transportation hub of water-land-sky to the upper reaches of Yangtze River and in the Southwest China area.
1. Airport
There are three civilian airports in Chongqing: the Jiangbei International Airport, Chongqing Wanzhou Wuqiao Airport, Chongqing Qianjiang Zhoubai Airport (under construction).
The largest airport in southwest-Chongqing Jiangbei Airport is extension and perfect according to the standard of international airport. 14 flight routes which include international and regional has been opened.
In 2005, the population of the pass out and in the airport is reached to 6.63 million. The visitor of international (local) flight is 0.2 million, the cargo reached to 101 thousand ton.
2. Ports
There is 25 navigation rivers, Yangtze River, jianglin river etc, and the total length is more than 1.6 thousand kilometers, which connects with cities along the river and with the ocean transport line. Right now the total mileage of water transport inside this area is more than 4 thousand kilometers. The throughput capacity of Chongqing port is 10 million ton, and can be connected to main ports of the world through river-ocean joint transportation. The water carriage Relay on
The 'gold water way', more than 10 ports and passenger/cargo wharfs have been built up, the hovercraft fast channel has been opened, the river-ocean joint transportation operation from shanghai to overseas has been developed so that the kiloton class vessels reach to shanghai straightly all the year. When the Sanxia program is finalized, and after the upgrading of the main ports of Chongqing, 10,000 tons grade vessels may arrive Chongqing along river.
3. Expressway
In the year of 2005 the mileage of roads in Chongqing is accumulate to 36,535 kilometers, in which the expressway 748 kilometers, arterial and secondary highway 4,852 kilometers.
In the latest national expressway planning 7918 road network, there are 5 expressways passing across Chongqing, they are from Shanghai to Chongqing, Shanghai to Chengdu, Baotou to Maoming, Chongqing to Kunming, Lanzhou to Haikou. Together with expressway construction, the bridge construction grows fast. So Chongqing is called 'bridge city'. Now 14 bridges have been built up across the Yangtze River, and many other bridges are under construction.
4. Rail way
There are 3 electrified railways: Chengdu-Chongqing, Chongqing-Guizhou, Xiangfan-Chongqing and Wanzhou-Daxian railway. And there are other regional railways: Sanjiang-Wansheng railway and Wansheng-Nanchuan railway. Yuhuai railway and Yusui railway (the first express railway in west China area), Wanzhou-Yibin railway and Xiangfan-Chongqing railway double line are under construction. Lanzhou-Chongqing railway is about to start.
The newly-built railway station is the greatest and most advanced in the southwest. Monorail #3 line under construction, will pass through the station, and northward to the Jiangbei international airport, southward to the Yuzhong District peninsula and Nan'an district.
5. Finance
In 2005, the financial institution achieved profi t 2.9 billion, foreign exchange balance reaches to USD 6.18 billion.
By the end of 2005, the total bank credit card consumption times is 11.43 million, the amount of credit card consumption amount was RMB 20.1 billion.
6. Insurance
In the year of 2005, there are 933 insurance companies of all levels, including 19 the branches of big insurance company, 32 professional insurance brokers, insurance employees are 8,571.
7. Telecommunication
Chongqing is a telecommunications command and control center of southwest contact and national important communications hub. In the build up open wire carrier wave level 1 trunk line
telecommunication network from Chongqing to Wuhan, Xi'an, Guiyang, Kunming, Chengdu. And 3 high throughput carrier wave co-axial cable from Chongqing to Wuhan, Xi'an, Chengdu. Through the satellite Communication Earth Station, more than 180 countries and regions IDD telephone has been open, all the counties have entered national telephone programmed switching network. The mail can arrives in more than one hundred countries, and develop the operation with
domestic large and medium sized cities, the commercial package door-door delivery, press mail and express mail etc. and international mail exchange.
8. Internet
By the end of 2005, users of Internet arrives to 1.2866 million.
(vi) Foreign Exchanges
1. sister cities
2. International Convention and Exhibition
China Chongqing Investment & Global Sourcing Fair (CCIGSF)
The CCIGSF is an investment and trade fair with the theme of "Promoting Investment and Global Trade", which is sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce, Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs under the State Council, People's Governments of 12 western provinces and several eastern provinces, and undertaken by People's Government of Chongqing Municipality. The CCIGSF is held every 2 years and has enjoyed 10 times complete successes up to the present.
China Chongqing High-Tech Fair &China International Exhibition Military Civil Technologies
China Chongqing Three-gorges International Tourism Festival China Chongqing International Auto Industry Fair China International Motorcycle Exhibition
(vii) Senior Education and Scientific Research
1. Senior education
At present there are 57 institutions of senior education including 2 ministry level key college, 13 city level universities, 22 senior technical colleges, 7 independent colleges.
2. Science research
The population that participate in scientific activity is 74,542 and fund for scientific activity is RMB 7.9014 billion, the amount of patent application is 4,070.
(viii) Tourism
Chongqing has rich traveling resources, namely concentrate with the mountain, river, spring, waterfall, gorge, hollow, and the dense culture sight together with Bayu culture, nation culture, migration culture, Sanxia culture, capital culture, city culture. Chongqing has one World heritage, six national famous scenic site, six national forest, 1 national nature reserve, cultural relic preserves section, two bases of Patriotic education, 1 national earthquake site, twenty seven national A class land scopes, besides, there are more than two hundred city level famous scenic site, nature reserve, important cultural relic preserves section.
1. Famous scenic site
peerless Yangtze River, World heritage Dazu stone carving, the modern city concentrate the river city, mountain city, and historical cultural city, the famous capital culture of anti-Japanese war and Hongyan Revolutionary historic scenes, etc., endue with the tourism resources of Chongqing bright character, and higher fame, after the complete of the Sanxia program, Sanxia area will appear many lakes and island which can be open up to be new tourism scope, it has irreplaceable uniqueness and tremendous exploitation potential.
2. Characteristic commodity
Civil handicraft of Chongqing is always known through out the world. The folding fan is abroad since Qing Dynasty. Besides all styles of the bamboo weaving, Tujia Brocade, the little hardware of Longshui, Sanxia inkstone, etc, all appears dense local color. Qijiang peasant print, the glass apparatus of Beibei, keramics of Yaofeng etc, which increase much more effulgence for Chongqing.
3. Food
Native products of Chongqing produce many expensive Chinese traditional medicine, such as Chinese goldthread, gastrodia tuber from Shizhu, eucommia from Nanchuan, ginseng from Wushan, etc.. Because the Geology and climate condition of Chongqing is fit for the the growth of fruit, many fruits are known well all over the country, Jiangjin citrus, Fengjie navel orange, Changshou (Shatian) shaddock, Chengkou disc persimmon, etc.. and the mandarin orange is the tribute of court in ancient time.
Chongqing is a main producing area of tea. The planting of tea has a long history, and some of them are of the top grade. "Chongqing block tea", "Cuiping needle tea", "Xinong palecoloured tips", etc..
The flavor food of Chongqing is various, exquisite taste, "Laosichuan dried beef", "Jinjiao spicy beef jerky", "Fulin Picklings", "Jiangjin ricer sugar", "Hechuan walnut slice" are welcomed all over the world.
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