Major Economic Indicators (2010)
Yangjiang, a prefecture-level city in the southwestern part of Guangdong Province, shares boundaries with Maoming to the west, Yunfu to the north, and Jiangmen to the east, and faces the South China Sea to the south. It covers an area of 7,813 sq km and has a population of 2.7 million. Enjoying a subtropical monsoon climate, the city has temperate weather and plentiful rainfall.
Yangjiang is 247 km from Guangzhou, 230 km from Zhanjiang and 160 km from Zhuhai. Hong Kong is 165 nautical miles from the city. The Guangzhou-Zhanjiang Highway and the Guangzhou-Maoming Railway go through the city, linking the city with other major cities in Guangdong Province. Yangjiang Port, a national Grade 1 port and has two 10,000-tonnage wharves. The Yangjiang Heshan Airport offers regular flights to Guangzhou, Zhuhai and other domestic major cities.
The city is rich in mineral resources, such as coal, iron ore and copper. It has 7.53 million tons of proven coal reserves, 35.2 million tons of iron ore reserves, 61.6 million tons of copper reserves and 70.8 million tons of sulfuric iron ore reserves.
Yangjiang's history traces back to over 10,000 years ago, when the earliest settlers began to live in this region. During the Qin Dynasty (221BC-206BC), the region belonged to Nanhai Shire. In 111BC, during the Han Dynasty (206BC-AD189), Gaoliang County was established there, and it governed present Yanjiang, the western part of Enping City, Maoming and other regions.
In AD220, the territory was partly governed by Anning County. During the Northern Dynasty and Southern Dynasty (AD439-589), Yangjiang became a county under the control of Gaozhou. Yangjiang was called Enzhou in AD1368. It kept this name for nearly 719 years. In 1988, Yanjiang was promoted to a city.
Yangjiang has rich tourism resources. The most recommendable scenic spots in the city include Eastern Silver Beach Scenic Area, Mawei Island, Lingxiao Rock, Dajiao Bay, Longgong Rock (dragon palace rock) and Daao Fishing Valley Cultural Town. The Eastern Silver Beach Scenic Area, located 40 km from downtown Yangjiang, covers an area of 12 sq km. With a 7.4-km-long silver beach, it is one of hottest resorts in Guangdong Province. Mawei Island, located 45 km from downtown Yangjiang, was developed in 1987. The Mawei Mountain, situated on the island, has well-preserved natural scenery. Dajiao Bay lies in the Hailing Island. It got its name "big horn" in Chinese, as it is surrounded by the mountains in three directions and looks like a buffalo horn.
Zhu Chang Lu, also known as Steamed Vermicelli Roll, is the most popular dish in Yangjiang. Similar to the steamed rice roll, it uses sesame, bean sprouts, small dried shrimp and egg as major ingredients and is wrapped in a rice roll.
