Major Policy Tools
Table 3.3 Statistics on 90 National Economic Development Zones, China, 2010
Statistic
National 90 national total zones
47 zones, 21 zones, 22 zones, eastern central western region region region
GDP, yuan, billions
397.98
26.85
19.14
4.76
2.96
Total industrial output, yuan, billions
707.77
77.54
57.88
12.96
6.70
Export value, yuan, billions
15.78
2.54
2.35
0.11
0.08
Export, high-technology products, $, billions
—
1.64
1.56
0.07
0.01
Inward FDI, $, billions
1.06
0.31
0.24
0.05
0.02
Cumulative foreign investment, $, billions
—
2.37
1.92
0.35
0.10
Foreign-invested firms, total
—
2,205
1,923
205
77
Developed area, square kilometers
—
23.93
16.80
3.97
3.16
Employees, millions
—
8.98
6.12
1.64
1.21
Source: CADZ 2011. Note: In 2010, $1.00 was roughly equal to Y 6.80. — = not available. FDI = foreign direct investment; GDP = gross domestic product.
cities of hinterland provinces and autonomous regions and for upgrading selected provincial zones to the national level. By mid-2012, the number of national economic development zones had risen to 116. The coastal (eastern) region still dominated, as shown by 2010 data on 90 national-level zones that report statistical data to the China Association of Development Zones (table 3.3). The coastal region accounted for 68 percent of the 2010 employment and 79 percent of the incoming FDI among the 90 zones. Regional disparities. Like many other countries, China has been unable
to roll back regional economic inequalities that are deeply rooted in geography and history. Despite the movement of tens of millions of workers from western villages to coastal cities, a full decade of large-scale infrastructure development, and strenuous efforts to lure foreign and domestic investors to China’s western region, the west’s share in development has scarcely changed. In the 90 zones reporting to the China Association of Development Zones, only 3.5 percent of foreign-invested firms are located in western zones, which received only 4.2 percent of incoming FDI in 2010 (see table 3.3).
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