Profiles of China Provinces, Cities and Industrial Parks

Major Economic Indicators

Notes:  ¹ In real terms  ² For all state-owned enterprises and other forms with annual sales over RMB 5 million
            ³ Jan-Aug of 2011
Sources: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011, China’s Customs Statistics 12.2010, 9.2011

General Background

Shaanxi has a total area of 205,800 square kilometers. Population stood at 37.4 million at the end of 2010. Located in central China and landlocked, it is adjacent to 8 other provinces.

Shaanxi has abundant reserves of coal, natural gas, petroleum, salt and other non-metal minerals. Shenmu（神木）and Fugu（府穀）are major production bases of fine quality coal in China. Together with its rich metallic and non-metallic mineral reserves, Shaanxi’s estimated reserves of mineral resources ranked first in the nation.

In 2010, Shaanxi’s R&D expenditure accounted for 2.15% of its GDP, ranked only after Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin.  With about 120 scientific research institutes and over 200 thousand personnel engaged in scientific and technological activities, it is an important scientific research and production base in China’s aviation, spaceflight and electronics.

Xi’an（西安）, Shaanxi’s capital city, is China’s ancient capital with abundant cultural and historical assets. With the majority of the province’s software enterprises, it now has become an IT powerhouse.

During the 11^th Five-Year Programme period (2006-2010), Shaanxi’s development targets focused on 4 sectors: equipment manufacturing, high-tech industries, energy and chemicals and traditional industries (notably food processing). In terms of services sector, the foci were on tourism and cultural industries, as well as also logistics and finance.

Industries

Shaanxi is a major agricultural base. Its agricultural products such as grain, vegetables, cured tobacco, apple and Chinese chestnut（板栗）are at leading position in China. It is the largest production and processing centre for fruits.

Composition of GDP (%)

Source: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011

Thanks to its abundant reserves of coal, natural gas and oil, Shaanxi has developed into an important energy production base and it has a well-developed electricity generation sector. There are plans to supply gas and electricity from Shaanxi to eastern China.

Rich resources endowments gave rise to heavy industry. Shaanxi manufactures various types of equipment, e.g. oil drills, grinding machines, lathe, and equipment for railways, mining, electricity generating, and petroleum and chemical processing etc. It also has a sizeable iron and steel making sector.

Shaanxi is a national center for research and production in aviation, aerospace, equipment manufacturing, electronics and agriculture.

Pharmaceutical industry is emerging in Shaanxi. As a production centre of traditional Chinese medicine, Xian has been designated as one of the 15 state-level export bases of pharmaceutical products. Famous brands include Shaanxi Jianmin Pharmaceutical（陝西健民制藥）, Xi’an-Janssen （西安楊森）Pharmaceutical Ltd. and Xi’an-Lijun（西安利君）Pharmaceutical etc.

Output Share of Leading Industry Groups 2010

Source: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011

Tourism

Being an important cradle of Chinese civilization, Shaanxi has abundant historic sites, especially in the ancient capital--Xi’an. While the terra-cotta army（秦始皇兵馬俑）is highly praised as the 8^th world wonder, other popular sites located in Shaanxi include Lantian Ape Man（藍田猿人遺址）, Xi'an Forest of Steles（西安碑林）, Wild Goose Pagoda（大雁塔）and Huaqing Pool（華清池）.  In addition, there are also glorious landscapes in Shaanxi where Mount Huashan（華山）is located.

Source: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011

Foreign Trade

In 2010, major export markets included the US, Hong Kong, Japan and Germany. Major exports included processed agricultural products, minerals, textiles and garments, metals and metal products, electrical/mechanical equipment and transport equipment etc.

Major import items were electrical and optical/health equipment, electrical/mechanical equipment and chemical products etc. Major import sources included the US, Singapore, Taiwan and Germany.

In 2010, Shaanxi’s exports to Hong Kong reached US$576 million (+167.7%), while its imports from Hong Kong amounted to US$ 36.2 million (+292.1%).

Foreign Investment

Over 48% of the utilised FDI went to the manufacturing sector in 2010. Manufacturing of communication equipment and manufacturing of medicines were two major industrial sector attracting FDI in 2010.  Real estate development accounted for 22% of the utilised FDI in 2010.

FDI in Shaanxi

Source: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011

Hong Kong is the largest investor in Shaanxi. In 2010, Hong Kong signed 68 projects (+28.3%), with contractual and utilized investment US$1369.58million (+67.1%) and US$937.8 million (+29.6%) respectively. Towngas, Hutchison Whampoa and Bank of East Asia are examples of Hong Kong companies in Xi’an. Other major investors included the US, Singapore, Canada and Japan.

Consumer Market

In 2010, retail sales of consumer goods rose by 18.4% to Rmb 319.6 billion with annual per capita disposal income of urban households reached RMB15,695 (+11.1%).  The largest consumer centre of Shaanxi is Xian.  The city’s retail sales accounted for 51.2% of the province’s total in 2010.

In 2010, expenditure on services accounted for 27.7% of the consumer’s budget. Transport and communications, medicine & healthcare services and housing have gained in relative share.

Composition of Per Capita Consumption Expenditure of Urban Household (%)

Source: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011

Economic Indicators of Major Cities (2010)

*   For all state-owned and non-state-owned enterprises with annual sales over RMB 5 million and not including output at the county-level.
Source: Shaanxi Statistical Yearbook 2011