City Introduction of Shandong, China: Liaocheng

Major Economic Indicators (2007)

Source: Liaocheng Economic and Social Development Report 2007

Introduction

Lying on the lower reaches of the Yellow River, Liaocheng is seated in the western part of Shandong Province. It neighbors the provincial capital Jinan to the southeast, Dezhou to the northeast, Tai'an to the south and Hebei Province and Henan Province to the west. Liaocheng is dotted by lakes and is known as "the water city" in China. The Grand Canal goes through the city.

Due to its geographic location at the meeting point of Shandong Province, Hebei Province and Henan Province, Liaocheng serves as an important transportation hub. The Jinan-Liaocheng Highway is connected with the Jinan-Qingdao Highway, cutting the drive time from Liaocheng to Jinan Airport and Qingdao Port to 1 hour and 4 hours, respectively. Qingdao Port is the world's seventh largest port in terms of cargo throughput in 2007. The Beijing-Kowloon Railway and the Handan-Jinan Railway run through the city, linking Liaocheng with the cities along the two railways.

Liaocheng is rich in coal, oil, natural gas, mineral water and limestone. It enjoys a semi-moist continental climate with four distinct seasons and enough sunshine.

Economic Features

Liaocheng is the thirteenth largest economy in Shandong Province in terms of the GDP in 2007. The city's GDP grew 16.2% year on year to RMB 102.3 billion, accounting for nearly 4% of Shandong's GDP. Secondary industry, which contributed 59.2% to the city's GDP, remains the major contributor the city's economy.

The industrial value-added output from heavy industry edged up 24.8% to RMB 37.4 billion, making up 69.3% of the city's total industrial value-added output, while that from light industry rose 15.9% to RMB 16.5 billion, making up 30.7% of the city's total. The value-added output from the manufacturing industry soared 22.4% to RMB 49.2 billion, comprising 91.2% of the city's total industrial value-added output.

The city’s major industries are glass products manufacturing, petrochemicals, salt chemicals, plastic products manufacturing and textiles. Shifeng Group, Shandong Xinfa Group and Shandong Tralin Paper are the leading firms in city. Xinfa Group, set up in 1994, is a private firm with a focus on the manufacture of auto parts. Its business also covers equipment manufacturing, electronics, food processing and trade. Its total assets surpassed RMB 6 billion in 2007.

Shifeng Group was set up in 1993 in Gaotang County of Liaocheng. Major products of the group include tractors, engines, tires, light trucks and harvesters. During the period from 2003 to 2006, the group invested a total of RMB 2 billion in building the Shifeng Juxing Tire Industrial Park. The park was designed to have a production capacity of 6.6 million tires annually.

The industrial value-added output from the service sector increased by 20.8% year on year to RMB 26.3 billion, comprising 25.7% of the city's GDP. The consumer market is active in the city. In 2007, the sales of consumer goods in Liaocheng soared 18.6% year on year to RMB 32.2 billion, accounting for 3.8% of that of Shandong.

The city’s total foreign trade value amounted to US$1.7 billion, reflecting a sharp rise of 72.8% year on year. The export value soared 63.5% year on year to US$998.9 million. Exports of textiles amounted to US$209.8 million, one fifth of Lioacheng's total export value.

In 2007, the city attracted foreign contractual investments of US$51.3 billion, while the utilized FDI in the city rose 48.4% year on year to US$103.1 million. Large multinational firms, such as DSM from the Netherlands and Itochu from Japan, have made investments in the city.