Major Economic indicators (2007)

Source: Huainan Economic and Social Development Report 2007

Introduction

Huainan is located in the north-central region of Anhui Province, at the middle reaches of the Huaihe River. It borders the provincial capital Hefei to the south, Lu'an to the southwest, Fuyang to the west, Bozhou to the northwest, Bengbu to the northeast and Chuzhou to the east. It covers an area of 2,596 sq km and has a population of 2.4 million. The city enjoys a moderate subtropical monsoon climate with cold, dry winters and hot, rainy summers. The rain season usually falls in the period from June to July.

Transportation in Huainan is very convenient. The Fuyang-Huainan Railway, the Huainan Railway and the Beijing-Fuzhou Railway intersect in the city. It has a well-established highway network, with the Hefei-Huainan Highway, the Huainan-Bengbu Highway, the Beijing-Fuzhou Highway, State Highway 206 and State Highway 102 running through the city.

Huainan has the largest coal reserve in East China. The proven coal reserve in the city is 15.3 billion tons, accounting for 32% of East China's total. 

Economic Features

The GDP of Huainan rose 12.2% from the previous year to RMB 35.9 billion, ranking eleventh among the 17 prefecture-level cities in Anhui Province. The value-added output from primary industry, secondary industry and tertiary industry hit RMB 3.8 billion, 19.9 billion and 12.2 billion, making up 10.6%, 55.5% and 33.9% of the city's GDP, respectively.

Heavy industry holds a dominant position in the city's industrial sector. In 2007, the value-added industrial output from heavy industry exceeded RMB 15.7 billion, with a rise of 17.0% year on year, while that from light industry was RMB 600 million, up 8.0% year on year. The value-added industrial output from heavy industry and light industry comprised 96.3% and 3.7% of that from the city, respectively.

Coal mining and dressing, electricity production and supply and chemical products manufacturing are the major industries in the city. In 2007, the value-added industrial output from coal mining and dressing grew 16.6% year on year to RMB 10.7 billion, accounting for 65.6% of the city's total. Electricity production and supply and chemical products manufacturing generated RMB 3.3 billion and RMB 800 million in value-added industrial output, making up 20.2% and 4.9% of that of the city, respectively.

The large companies in Huainan include Huainan Mining Group, China Eastar Group, Datang Huainan Luohe Power Plant and Anhui Huainan Chemicals Group. Huainan Mining Group, formerly known as Huainan Mining Bureau, is a large coal miner in Anhui Province. It has an annual coal production capacity of 80 million tons. In 2007, the group gained sales revenue of RMB 15.7 billion. China Eastar Group, set up in 1994, specializes in chemicals. Its output value in 2008 was RMB 5.1 billion.

The consumer market is active in Huainan. In 2007, the sales of consumer goods soared 16.5% from a year earlier to RMB 10.9 billion, comprising 4.2% of the total sales of consumer goods in Anhui Province.

The foreign trade value in the city rose 17.2% year on year to US$92.1 million, including export value of US$37.5 million and import value of US$54.6 million. Chemical products, textiles, garments, glass products, base metal products and sports products are the major export products in the city. The major foreign trade partners of the city are the E.U., Japan and the U.S.

In 2007, the utilized FDI in Huainan stood at US$201.3 million, with an increase of 11.7% year on year. The utilized FDI in Huainan Economic and Technological Development Zone exceeded US$13.6 million in 2007, more than one tenth of the city's total utilized FDI in the same period.

Cultural Highlights

Historically, the name Huainan referred to the entire part south of the Huaihe River and the north of the Yangtze River, which consists of the whole central part of Anhui Province. Huainan's history spans over 4,000 years. During the Xia and Shang Dynasties (1600 BC-1100BC), ancient tribes dwelled in this region. The region was first called Huainan in 203 BC, when the general Ying Bu was bestowed with the title "the King of Huainan" by Liu Bang (an emperor of the Han Dynasty). The political center of the area was Shouchun. In 164BC, Huainan was divided into three parts. One part maintained the name Huainan. The famous "Feishui War" between the Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Qin Dynasty occurred in the region. Huagu Opera, also known as Flower Drum Opera, is popular in this city.

Tourist Attractions

Huainan has many scenic spots, such as the Ancient Shouzhou Kiln Site, the Bagong Mountain Scenic Area, the Shangyao National Forest Park and the Maoxian Cave Scenic Area. The Ancient Shouzhou Kiln Site consists of Guanzuiwen Reserve, Gaoyao Reserve, Hospital Ward, the Pine Forest and the Chexiaowan Reserve. It is one of the seven largest porcelain kilns in the Tang Dynasty. The Bagong Mountain Scenic Area is a national geo-park. It is one of the origin places for Chu-Han Culture. There are large number of historical sites, such as ancient battlefields, gardens, temples and pagodas, in the scenic area.

Huainan has plentiful local dishes, such as Huainan Bean Curd, Beef Soup, Bean Cake (made of green beans), Sweet Bean Dumpling, Shangyao Sanzi (fried wheat) and Xiaji Mian Yuan (sweet dumpling).