7 May 2019
Fujian: Market Profile
Major Economic Indicators
Economic Indicators | 2017 | 2018 | ||
Value | Growth (%, y-o-y) | Value | Growth (%, y-o-y) | |
Gross Domestic Product (RMB bn) | 3,229.2 | 8.11 | 3,580.4 | 8.31 |
Per Capita GDP (RMB) | 82,960 | 7.11 | — | — |
Added Value Output | ||||
Primary industry (RMB bn) | 221.5 | 3.71 | 238.0 | 3.51 |
Secondary industry (RMB bn) | 1,535.4 | 6.81 | 1,723.2 | 8.51 |
Tertiary industry (RMB bn) | 1,472.3 | 10.21 | 1,619.2 | 8.81 |
Value-added Industrial Output2 | 1,158.6 | 8.01 | — | 9.11 |
Fixed-assets Investment (RMB bn) | 2,622.7 | 13.5 | — | 11.5 |
Retail Sales (RMB bn) | 1,301.3 | 11.5 | 1,431.7 | 10.8 |
Inflation (Consumer Price Index, %) | — | 1.2 | — | 1.5 |
Exports (US$ bn) | 104.9 | 1.2 | 115.6 | 10.1 |
By foreign-invested enterprises (US$ bn) | 38.3 | 5.5 | 40.2 | 4.9 |
Imports (US$ bn) | 66.0 | 24.4 | 71.9 | 8.9 |
By foreign-invested enterprises (US$ bn) | 26.1 | 15.6 | 27.8 | 6.4 |
Utilised Foreign Direct Investment (US$ bn) | 8.6 | 4.6 | — | — |
Notes:
1 In real terms 2 For all state-owned enterprises and other forms with annual sales over RMB20 million
Sources: Fujian Statistical Yearbook 2018, Fujian Statistical Bureau, China’s Customs Statistics 12.2017, 12.2018
General Background
Fujian is located in the south eastern coast, opposite to Taiwan. It has a total area of 124,000 sq km. Total population stood at 39.11 million in 2017.
The Southeast Fujian (閩東南) area which comprises five cities and counties – Fuzhou (福州), Xiamen (廈門), Putian (莆田), Quanzhou (泉州) and Zhangzhou (漳州), is the economic hub of Fujian, accounting for 76% of the province’s GDP in 2017.
In 2004, Fujian proposed the “Westbank Economic Zone” (海峽西岸經濟區) strategy, a zone along the west coast of the Taiwan Straits (including parts of Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces) for socio-economic development. In May 2009, the State Council passed the Several Opinions on Supporting Fuijian Province to Accelerate Construction of the Economic Zone West of the Taiwan Straits.
The China (Fujian) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FJFTZ) was officially launched in April 2015. The FTZ covers a total area of 118.04 sq km and consists of three areas: Fuzhou Area, Pingtan Area and Xiamen Area. The FJFTZ is positioned to build an innovative cross-Strait co-operation mechanism, and streamline investment management measures in a move to open up to Taiwan and other foreign investors.
Industries
Agriculture still plays a role, although the sector’s share in GDP has been decreasing over the years. In 2017, heavy industry accounted for 46.5% of the total industrial value-added while light industry took up the rest.
Composition of GDP (%)
2005 | 2011 | 2017 | |
Primary | 12.6 | 9.2 | 6.9 |
Secondary | 48.5 | 51.6 | 47.5 |
Industry | 43.3 | 43.7 | 39.3 |
Tertiary | 38.9 | 39.2 | 45.6 |
Source: Fujian Statistical Yearbook 2018
Value-added Share of Leading Industry Groups (2017)
% share of total industrial added value | |
Leather, furs, down and related products | 9.4 |
Telecommunications, computer & other electronic equipment | 7.5 |
Nonmetal mineral products | 7.1 |
Textile industry | 5.5 |
Garments | 5.2 |
Agricultural & sideline products processing | 5.0 |
Electrical equipment and machinery | 4.8 |
Cultural, educational and sports goods | 3.7 |
Source: Fujian Statistical Yearbook 2018
Within the tertiary sector, “wholesale and retail” accounted for the largest share of value-added in 2017 (17%) while "transport, storage and post" recorded the fastest growth at 8.3%.
Tourism
Fujian is rich in tourism resources, such as Wuyi Mountain (武夷山), Gulangyu Isle (鼓浪嶼), Taining Golden Lake (泰寧大金湖地質公園), etc. In 2017, Fujian received 375 million (+21.6%) domestic tourists with tourism receipts of RMB457.1 billion (+30.7%) and 7.75 million (+13.8%) overseas tourists with foreign exchange income of US$7.6 billion (+14.5%).
Foreign Trade
Major export markets included the US, Hong Kong, Japan, the Philippines, Taiwan and Germany. Hong Kong was the second major export market of Fujian in 2017, accounting for 6.6% of the province’s total exports. Fujian’s major export items included machinery and transport equipments, clothing and accessories and footwear etc.
Major import goods included machinery and transport equipments, special, scientific and controlled instruments and equipment. In 2017, major import sources included Taiwan, the US, Japan and Australia.
Foreign Investment
Fujian recorded continued increase in inflow of FDI in recent years. Hong Kong is the largest source of FDI in Fujian, accounting for 50.3% of the province’s utilised FDI in 2017. Taiwan and Singapore were other major investment sources in 2017.
In terms of registered capitals of foreign-invested enterprises, the manufacturing sector accounted for 43.3% of the total in 2017, followed by leasing and business services at 16.7%.
Consumer Market
In 2017, annual per capita disposal income of urban households reached RMB39,001 (+8.3%).
The retail landscape in Fujian is also changing. Apart from traditional department stores, various forms of modern operation such as chain stores, supermarkets, warehouse type hypermarkets and convenience stores are popular. Major overseas-invested retail enterprises in Fujian include Walmart from the US, Metro (麥德龍) from Germany, Carrefour from France, Auchan (歐尚) from France and Trust-mart (好又多) from Taiwan.
Composition of Per Capita Consumption of Urban Household (%)
2005 | 2017 | |
Food, cigarettes & drinks | 40.9 | 32.9 |
Clothing | 8.1 | 5.5 |
Household articles | 5.2 | 5.7 |
Medicine & medical services | 5.4 | 4.8 |
Transportation & communications | 11.9 | 12.9 |
Recreation, cultural & education | 12.6 | 9.6 |
Residence | 12.2 | 26.3 |
Source: Fujian Statistical Yearbook 2018
Economic Indicators of Major Cities (2017)
Cities | GDP (RMB bn) | Per capita GDP (RMB) | Industrial Enterprises* Business Revenue (RMB bn) | Retail Sales (RMB bn) |
Fuzhou (福州) | 710.4 | 93,290 | 824.9 | 419.4 |
Quanzhou (泉州) | 754.8 | 87,615 | 1,332.4 | 303.4 |
Xiamen (廈門) | 435.1 | 109,740 | 558.9 | 144.7 |
Zhangzhou (漳州) | 356.3 | 70,216 | 488.0 | 98.2 |
Putian (莆田) | 240.5 | 70,646 | 292.5 | 69.5 |
* For all state-owned and other forms of enterprises with annual sales over RMB20 million.
Source: Fujian Statistical Yearbook 2018