REGIONAL> Development
Tianjin: China's third fastest growing city
By Li Yang and Wang Yu (China Daily Tianjin Bureau)
Updated: 2009-07-29 09:53

Tianjin has become China's third fastest-growing city despite the global economic downturn thanks to huge investment stimulus.

Zhang Qiang, deputy director of the Tianjin Statistics Bureau - which on Monday released latest data on Tianjin's economic performance for the first half of 2009 - said the city witnessed a "rapid and steady growth momentum" so far this year.

"Although the global economic meltdown is dampening foreign trade to a large extent, Tianjin has managed to make up the loss by increasing domestic stimulus investment."

"While GDP [gross domestic product] figures of other provinces and regions are yet to come up, Tianjin is poised to take the leading position in all four municipalities," Zhang said.

According to the statistics issued by the Tianjin Statistics Bureau, Tianjin's gross domestic product (GDP) was 315.485 billion yuan in the first half of 2009, with 16.2 percent growth year-on-year, 9.1 percent higher than the national average.

Tianjin's GDP grew despite a rapid decrease in its foreign trade in the first half of 2009 caused by the global economic downturn.

Zhang said among many factors which contributed to Tianjin's robust growth, Binhai New Area (BNA) - a major economic development zone - played a key role in boosting its domestic demand.

According to the data released by the Tianjin Statistics Bureau, BNA's GDP growth rates reached 23 percent in the first half of 2008, 6.8 percent higher than Tianjin's average. BNA also leads in fixed asset investment and total retail sales of consumer goods, with 9.7 percent and 10.3 percent respectively higher than the city's average.

BNA, which includes Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area, Tianjin Port Free Trade Zone and Tianjin Port, is currently one of the fastest growing areas in northern China.

China's major projects such as the development of the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city and Xiangluowan Business Zone, both in BNA, resulted in huge large-scale construction investment.

Tianjin's total investment in fixed assets for the first half of 2009 equals to 218.108 billion yuan, with 45.4 percent growth rate year-on-year. More than 100 major projects are planned to be developed with many already being under construction.

"Personally I think that without these projects, we would find it more difficult to cope with the shock of a plummeting foreign demand," said Zhang.

He said major projects such as the Tianjin final assembly line for the Airbus A320 series have the ability to effectively solve lack of foreign demand as well as create new industries.

In the past six months Tianjin's producer price index (PPI) suffered a year-on-year decrease of 9.6 percent and the number is predicted to keep increasing.

Zhang suggested the accelerating decrease of PPI could signal a weak social demand and a falling profit for enterprises. But the "boom in bust" is in itself worth celebrating.

The increase in the number of new operations in Tianjin is the symbol of a stronger confidence of both domestic and foreign investors in Tianjin, esp. the BNA.

"Tianjin has become one of the most attractive destinations for investment," he said.