Major Economic indicators (2007)

Source: Chaohu Economic and Social Development Report 2007

Introduction

Chaohu is situated in central part of Anhui Province, with the Yangtze River traversing the city. The city is embraced by the Chaohu Lake, the fifth largest freshwater lake in China. Chaohu adjoins Hefei, the provincial capital, to the northwest, Lu'an to the west, Anqing to the southwest, Tongling to the south, Wuhu to the southeast, and Maanshan and Jiangsu Province to the east.

The city is easily accessible by air, water, railway and highway. Hefei Luogang Airport and Nanjing Lukou International Airport are located merely 60 km and 120 km from Chaohu. Nanjing Port, the largest inland port in China by cargo traffic in 2007, is 130 km from the city. Zhujiaqiao Foreign Trade Port, 60 km from Chaohu, provides another option to reach the city. The Hefei-Jiujiang Railway, the Hefei-Nanjing Highway, the Hefei-Chaohu-Wuhu Highway and the Shanghai-Chengdu Highway go through the city, connecting it with other domestic cities.

The city covers an area of 9,432 sq km and has a population of 4.6 million. Lying in a subtropical humid monsoon region, Chaohu has four distinct seasons and average temperature of 16?. Chaohu is rich in mineral resources, such as limestone, and sulfuric iron. 

Economic Features

Chaohu's economy has maintained a two-digit growth since 2003. In 2007, Chaohu's economy rose 13.4% from a year earlier to RMB 40.5 billion, ranking tenth among the 17 prefecture-level cities in Anhui Province.

The value-added output from the agricultural sector grew 6.0% year on year to RMB 9 billion, comprising 22.2% of the city's GDP. The industrial sector, the main sector, generated RMB 16.9 billion in value-added output, accounting for 41.7% of the city's GDP, while the service sector realized value-added output of RMB 14.6 billion, contributing 36.1% to the city's economy.

The city is a major cotton, oil plants and aquatic products base for Anhui. In 2007, the city produced 82,400 tons of cotton, 0.3 million tons of oil plants and 196,700 tons of aquatic products, making up 22%, 11.5% and 10.7% of Anhui Province's total, respectively.

The city is dominated by heavy industry. In 2007, the value-added industrial output from heavy industry and light industry soared 31.4% and 2.1% to RMB8.1 billion and 2.3 billion, constituting 78.6% and 21.4% of that from the city. Machinery, cables, raw chemicals and chemical products, metallurgy and agricultural products processing are the pillar industries in the city. Their value-added industrial output totaled RMB 7 billion and comprised 68% of the city's total.

Chaohu is a cable production base in China. In 2007, the Ministry of Science and Technology approved Wuwei County of Chaohu to be a state-level special cable manufacturing base. Chaohu is home to large cable makers, such as Anhui Hualing Cable Group, Anhui Huahai Special Cables Holding Ltd and Anhui Siait Cable Group. Anhui Hualing Cable Group had annual output value of RMB 3 billion in 2007. It is capable of producing 500 types of cables.

The wholesaling and retailing sector and the logistics sector in Chaohu, which had value-added output of RMB 2.9 billion and RMB 2.2 billion in 2007, comprised 19.9% and 15.1% of that from the city's service sector, respectively.

The foreign trade value in the city amounted to US$267 million in 2007, having increased 48.6% over the previous year. The export value hit US$241 million, up 49.9% year on year, while the import value reached US$26 million, up 37.6% year on year. The export value of mechanical and electronic products was up 23.9% year on year to US$58 million, accounting for 23.9% of the city's export value.

In 2007, the city attracted 28 foreign-funded projects, and contractual foreign investments tripled, reaching US$396 million. The utilized FDI in the city exceeded US$58 million, reflecting an increase of 45.7% from a year ago. However, the city lacks investments from large multinational and Fortune 500 enterprises.

Cultural Highlights

Chaohu is famed as a land of fish and rice. It has splendid culture. The territory was inhabited as early as in the Paleolithic Age. Owing to the geographic location, Chaohu always served as a battlefield in ancient times. Li Hongzhang, a famous general during the Qing Dynasty, trained the Huai Army around Chaohu Lake. Chaohu is also the home town of many celebrities, including the great strategist Fan Zeng, the great general Zhou Yu and the great poet Zhang Ji.

Tourist Attractions

Chaohu Lake is dotted with diverse historical and cultural sites, such as Zhong Temple, Wenfeng Tower and Phoenix Stage. Zhong Temple, standing at the Phoenix Stage, was first built during the Eastern Han Dynasty. Chaohu Lake is hottest tourist attraction in Chaohu City. Other attractions in the city include Yinping Moutain, Tianmen Moutain and Bantang Hot Spring.

The city has diverse delicate local dishes, such as Dongguan Old Goose Soup, Wuwei Braised Duck, Xiangxue Braised Duck, Steaming Cab and Chaohu White Shrimp. Chaohu White Shrimp is small, tasty and fresh. Chaohu Silver Fish, small and white, is always used to cook Silver Fish Soup and Silver Fish Steaming Egg.

Honors

Provincial Gardenlike City (2009)
---Anhui Provincial Government