Now Hangzhou â which will host the 2022 Asian Games â has been named Best China City 2015 in the first survey of its
September 2015
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Contents
Highways paved with gold
China’s push for a New Silk Road under its ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative has been described as the most important economic development of the 21st century. But can President Xi Jinping deliver on his lavish promise of a new world order in trade and commerce?
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Crossing continents
The New Silk Road is not a single thoroughfare but — like its ancient predecessor — a long and winding network of cross-continental trade routes by road, rail and sea that will impact upon the lives and livelihoods of billions of people
Milestones along the New Silk Road
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Xining City Guide
Xining Municipal People’s Government
History-making Hangzhou is China’s best city
Its famous West Lake has been celebrated by poets and writers since the ninth century. Now Hangzhou — which will host the 2022 Asian Games — has been named Best China City 2015 in the first survey of its kind by Euromoney
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China cities 2015: results
The New Silk Road
Highways paved with gold China’s push for a New Silk Road under its ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative has been described as the most important economic development of the 21st century. But can President Xi Jinping deliver on his lavish promise of a new world order in trade and commerce? CHINA’S PRESIDENT XI Jinping is a leader of sweeping ambition worth of infrastructure projects are under way in neighbouring and grandiose ideas. Soon after he came to office in 2012, he Central Asian countries such as Kazakhstan, and a major new spoke of the ‘Chinese Dream’ – an expression that quickly port to export goods originating from Central Asia is being became a mantra recited by officials to characterize a bold new constructed in eastern China. China striding out on the world stage. Meanwhile, in key cities along the route, such as Xining on the That dream, Xi and Communist Party experts explained, was edge of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau, where three key high-speed one of national rejuvenation, improving people’s livelihoods and rail lines converge, transformative infrastructure and building building a better society and a stronger military. Its aims were programmes are under way to prepare for a rush of new business. prosperity, socialism, collective effort and national glory. First build the roads Whatever the philosophy, the Tian Guoli, chairman of “Xi’s big idea is to create a New Silk Road – most concrete manifestation the Bank of China, which restoring and revitalizing the ancient trade of the concept is surely the is investing $100 billion in potentially world-shaking loans for works along the New routes across Asia, the Middle East and Europe by initiative the president Silk Road over the next three road, by rail and by sea” announced months after the years, summed up the thinking Chinese Dream came into behind the grand plan. “The circulation – ‘One Belt, One Road’. Chinese have a saying: ‘If you Xi’s big idea is to create a New Silk Road – restoring and want to get rich, you have to first build the roads’,” he said in an revitalizing the ancient trade routes across Asia, the Middle East interview with state media. Countries along the route might be and Europe by road, by rail and by sea, opening a new era of relatively underdeveloped but they have enormous potential, he commercial opportunity from eastern China to Western Europe, said. “The epicentre of development will move towards the east Africa and beyond. ultimately and Xi is just summarizing this trend,” Tian said. The concept is truly epic in scale. According to China, the creation of a New Silk Road will benefit 4.4 billion people – 63% In harmony? of the world’s population – in 65 countries and generate trade of Inevitably, the scope of the initiative has triggered concern $2.5 trillion over the next 10 years. and suspicion in some quarters that the New Silk Road has the potential to spread Chinese hegemony and increase its naval The biggest market in the world strength in historically disputed parts of Asia. Xi described the economic belt along the New Silk Road as “the Foreign minister Wang Yi dismissed this, saying that rather biggest market in the world” and said in his speech announcing than a solo project by China the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative the initiative: “This will be a great undertaking benefiting the was a “symphony” performed by all the countries along the New people of all countries along the route.” Silk Road – although whether they remain in harmony long The rich rhetoric is backed by hard cash. Since announcing enough to reap its rewards remains to be seen. the idea in September 2013, Xi has overseen the establishment The real tests of this Chinese Dream in action will not be of a $40 billion infrastructure investment fund to fund work China’s proven ability to perform infrastructure miracles but its across the region. ability to forge closer diplomatic as well as economic ties with the China has also set up the Asian Infrastructure Investment countries along the route of the New Silk Road and the sheer cost Bank, headquartered in Beijing and supported by 57 of the works. Does China have deep enough pockets to withstand countries, and contracted an estimated $250 billion worth of the winds of economic slowdown and maintain its commitment infrastructure projects. Overseas loans since the September to the project, and does it have enough capable diplomats to 2013 speech have been dominated by countries along the smooth the path to development for mutual benefit? route, a recent study found. Those are the questions that will ultimately determine The foundations of the New Silk Road are already being laid. whether the New Silk Road is the route to a brave future for Harbours are being built in Sri Lanka, tens of billions of dollars’ global commerce or a rhetorical road to nowhere.
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SPECIAL REPORT : CHINA CITIES · September 2015
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Crossing continents The New Silk Road is not a single thoroughfare but – like its ancient predecessor – a long and winding network of cross-continental trade routes by road, rail and sea that will impact upon the lives and livelihoods of billions of people THE NAME CARRIES with it the weight of history, evoking a lost world of eastern empires, camel trains carrying cargoes of spices and perfumes, Arabian nights and endless journeys across deserts, mountains and through mysterious hidden kingdoms. The Silk Road is as much a place of the imagination as a historic trade route – recalling an era of adventure, discovery, romance and enough exotic promise to capture the emotion as well as the intellect. Small wonder then that when President Xi Jinping – in the unlikely setting of Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan – announced his ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative to create a New Silk Road in September 2013, it set off a storm of interest and speculation. Who would pay for the vast infrastructure works needed to recreate the ancient trade route in a modern context? Who would tackle the regional differences of opinion that might block it? What were China’s political objectives in opening up a New Silk Road? China has wasted little time in getting the project started and setting up the funding bodies to pay for its various stages, while at the same time ramping up its diplomacy to ward off fears of Chinese hegemony and military influence along the routes.
Eastern promise The New Silk Road is not a single trade artery but a complex lattice of road, rail and sea routes that connect China to Central Asia, southern Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe and Africa, potentially reaching some two thirds of the world’s population. In February, just 16 months after the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy was made public, China released detailed maps and costings showing how the New Silk Road would meander out to 65 countries to smooth the path of global commerce. One Belt, Road TheOne maps produced by China show a land route tracing much of the ancient route. It begins in Xian in northwest China before Source: CLSA stretching out west through Urumqi to Central Asia. It then goes to northern Iran before swinging west through Iraq, Syria and Turkey. From Istanbul it crosses the Bosporus and heads northwest through Europe, including Germany and the Netherlands, and then heads south to Venice in Italy. Meanwhile, branches of the New Silk Road pass through Lhasa to Nepal and southern Asia and through southern Xinjiang province to Central Asia. The maritime route, meanwhile, begins in Quanzhou in China’s Fujian province and heads south to the Malacca Strait. From Kuala Lumpur it heads to India and then crosses the Indian Ocean to Nairobi. From Nairobi it goes north round the Horn of Africa and through the Red Sea into the Mediterranean,
ONE BELT, ONE ROAD
Moscow Russia
Istanbul Turkey
Venice Italy
Urumqi China
XiʼAn China Fuzhou China One belt
Nairobi Kenya
One road Kuala Lumpur M alaysia
Source: CLSA
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SPECIAL REPORT : CHINA CITIES · September 2015
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The New Silk Road meeting the land-based Silk Road in Venice. Perhaps deliberately, the routes chosen appear to ignore present-day realities in countries like Iran and Syria. They put Venice back in its historic position as a trading hub for Europe rather than a city of summer crowds and gondola rides.
Historic awareness By faithfully respecting and sticking to the ancient route, the New Silk Road will reopen trade networks that have in some cases been closed by warfare, disease and development of new shipping routes for more than 500 years. The ancient Silk Road stretched 4,000 miles from eastern China to the Mediterranean. It took its name from the Chinese silk first carried along it more than 2,000 years ago at the time of the Han Dynasty. For centuries, its network of land and sea routes carried rich cargoes from east to west and west to east, flourishing under the Roman empire, the Byzantine empire and even under the Mongol domination of Asia. The Silk Road played a major part in the economic and social development of China, Persia, Africa and the Indian subcontinent, forging political and commercial relations between countries that were continents apart in an era of slow long-distance travel. It nurtured the formidable reputations for trading of many different nationalities including the Chinese, Greeks, Persians, Somalis, Armenians, Indians and Arabs and inspired the 13th century travels of Marco Polo through China, Mongolia and Southeast Asia. But the influence and importance of the ancient Silk Road began to crumble when the Mongol empire fell apart. Warlords seized territory along the western part of the route and political powers along the Silk Road became economically and culturally distant. The Black Death sealed sections of the route for fear of disease spreading. The transport of gunpowder and modern weaponry along the Silk Road led to security fears and tighter border controls. European maritime exchanges led to a decline in trade along the Silk Road and it stopped serving as a shipping route for silk in 1453 when the Ottoman rulers at Constantinople blocked trade with the west.
Funding vehicles Half a millennium on, China’s concern is how to fund the New Silk Road and its plan for infrastructure projects along the route to be financed by three key sources – the Silk Road Infrastructure Fund, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank. Launched in February 2014, the $40 billion Silk Road Infrastructure Fund is capitalized by China’s forex reserves and managed in a similar way to a sovereign wealth fund. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched in October 2014, is intended to be a global development bank. Headquartered in Beijing, it already has the support of more than 50 countries and territories inside and outside the region. The New Development Bank is a multilateral development bank established in July 2014 and based in Shanghai with an initial $50 billion seeding by China, India, South Africa, Brazil and Russia – each with an equal share of control.
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Those arrangements have already caused some friction in the West as the three new funding bodies are seen in some quarters as alternatives to the established World Bank, Asian Development Bank and International Monetary Fund. In a report on the ‘One Belt, One Road’ project, excitedly titled ‘A Brilliant Plan’, Asia brokerage and investment group CLSA suggests that the initiative may be founded more in diplomatic expediency than in a dreamy reimagining of past trade pacts and partnerships. “There are compelling geopolitical reasons, such as energy security, for China to push ahead with its plans at a time when its trading partners are potentially excluding it from strategic agreements,” says the report, which was discussed at a major investors’ forum in Hong Kong in September. “Trans-Pacific Partnership countries, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and the EU-Japan agreement show comprehensive liberalisation agendas, but do not include China and have the potential to increase trading costs.” Under the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative, China plans to negotiate free-trade agreements with 65 countries along the route, the report says – significantly more than the total number of such agreements it currently has.
Reaping benefits The New Silk road would also have significant benefits for China’s domestic economy, according to the CLSA report. “China’s top priority is to stimulate the domestic economy via exports from industries with major overcapacity such as steel, cement and aluminium,” it said. “Many will be build-transfer-operate schemes in which large SOEs will lead the way, but smaller companies will follow. The domestic plan divides China into five regions with infrastructure plans to connect with neighbouring countries and increase connectivity.” A briefing by David Beaves, senior partner at international commercial law firm Ince & Co, described the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy as “the most important economic event of the 21st century” but agreed that it was driven largely by China’s own interests. “It is all about selling Chinese products and commodities and securing supply points,” he said, pointing out that in the maritime route, China was seeking a diversification of trade routes by investing in ports such as Colombo in Sri Lanka. The reason for this was that the Malacca Strait had long been a source of concern to China as a potential “choke point” for its trade with around 70% of China’s imported oil passing through it. Whatever the underlying motives, there is no question that the New Silk Road project is the most flamboyant and significant manifestation yet of China’s assertive role on the world stage. In May this year, just 20 months after his landmark speech announcing the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy, President Xi Jinping was back in Kazakhstan to discuss the progress of the New Silk Road. He carried on to Russia and Belarus, two other vital allies on the route. The foundations are in place – and the engineer of this potentially world-changing project is impatient to see the New Silk Road take shape.
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Milestones along the New Silk Road China has turned the concept of a New Silk Road from rhetoric to practical reality in the two years since the initiative was revealed by Xi Jinping. Here are some of the key dates along the journey so far. September 2013: Chinese President Xi Jinping announces the concept of a Silk Road Economic Belt covering China and Central Asia for the first time during a visit to neighbouring Kazakhstan. Speaking at the Nazarbayev University in Astana, he says the area covered is the biggest market in the world and describes the New Silk Road initiative as “a great undertaking benefitting the people of all countries along the route”. This is the first public mention by a Chinese official of the strategic vision. October 2013: In his maiden Southeast Asian tour, President Xi proposes a new Maritime Silk Road in a speech to the Indonesian parliament, and also proposes the establishment of an Asian Infrastructure Bank to finance infrastructure construction and promote regional economic integration. November 2013: The Central Committee of the Communist Party endorses the New Silk Road initiative and calls for the accelerating of infrastructure links among neighbouring countries to make it possible. December 2013: President Xi, speaking at the Communist Party’s Central Economic Work Conference, calls for strategic planning for the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative and speaks of building a “community of common interests” along the route. February 2014: President Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin agree to work together on the New Silk Road project and to connect the routes to Russia’s railway network stretching from Asia to Europe. March 2014: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers a government work report in which he calls for a speeding up of construction work on the New Silk Road routes. The report also cites the need for balanced development of the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. May 2014: The Marine Silk Road begins to take shape as the first phase of a $98 million logistics terminal in the port of Lianyungang in China’s Jiangsu province goes into operation. The terminal is designed to be a base for goods travelling along the New Silk Road from Central Asia to travel on to overseas markets. October 2014: Twenty-one Asian countries sign up as founding members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and, in a memorandum of understanding, agree that Beijing will be the base for the bank’s headquarters when it is formally established at the end of 2015. November 2014: President Xi announces a Silk Road Fund to pay for infrastructure and other projects targeting industrial
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and financial cooperation between countries along the route of the New Silk Road and pledges $40 billion to the fund from China. December 2014: The ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative is singled out as a priority for the year ahead by the Central Economic Work Conference. In the same month, China and Thailand agree a draft memorandum of understanding on cooperation over railways between the two countries. January 2015: New Zealand, the Maldives, Tajikistan and Saudi Arabia add their support to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. By August, the number of regional and nonregional founding members of the bank will climb to 57. February 2015: The Silk Road Fund goes into operation. In the same month, China sets out a detailed vision of the New Silk Road, spelling out its priorities as transport infrastructure, increased trade and investment between countries along the route along with cultural exchange and financial cooperation. March 2015: In a keynote address at the opening of the Boao Forum on Hainan Island in China, President Xi outlines the ‘One Belt, One Road’ strategy to an international audience. He says: “The programmes will be open and inclusive, not exclusive. They will be a real chorus comprising all countries along the routes.” March 2015: Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi says China will focus its international diplomatic efforts in 2015 on the New Silk Road initiative and dismissed comparisons between the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy and the US Marshall Plan which saw the US funding post-war economic recovery in Europe. May 2015: President Xi returns to Kazakhstan, where he first announced the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy, and also visits Russia and Belarus to discuss cooperation over the New Silk Road. June 2015: A study by a London-based investment bank finds that the majority of 67 overseas loan commitments since late 2013 made by China’s largest policy lenders – the China Development Bank and the China Ex-Im Bank – have been in areas that fall under the ‘One Belt, One Road’ strategy. The bank calculates that infrastructure project loans accounted for 52% of the loans and trade finance for 30% with the value of the 67 loans totalling $49.9 billion. September 2015: A major international auditing firm estimates that more than $250 billion worth of infrastructure projects have been contracted since the launch of the ‘One Belt, One Road’ strategy two years earlier.
SPECIAL REPORT : CHINA CITIES · September 2015
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Xining City Guide
Xining - A city at the crossroads of history An introduction by Zhang Xiaorong, Mayor of Xining
Zhang Xiaorong, Mayor of Xining
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t is a tremendous honour for me to present this City Guide of Xining to the readers of Euromoney. Xining is a city with a rich past and a brilliant future. It is the capital of Qinghai province in northwest China and is known throughout the country as the ‘cool city’ because of its climate and high altitude. We have a thriving industrial sector, a wealth of natural resources, and we are visited by 14 million tourists a year who come here to enjoy the spectacular natural beauty on our doorstep. What makes our city so special is its unique geography on the edge of the vast and enchanting Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Xining is the gateway to Tibet and, critically, a hub city on the New Silk Road that
China is creating under the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy announced by President Xi Jinping in 2013. Under this visionary policy, global trade is being reshaped and reimagined. High-speed express railway lines and a network of national highways are step by step linking China to southern Asia, Central Asia and Europe.The process is opening up a new world of commercial opportunity and connecting hundreds of millions of people from east and west – and each of the key land routes along the New Silk Road passes through Xining. Throughout the centuries, Xining has been a buzzing centre of commerce and transportation set at the heart of the ancient Silk Road. Our position at a vital key
intersection of the great trade route has given us a colourful history and made our city a melting pot of nationalities and religions. We are a city where Muslims, Buddhists, Taoists and people from 35 different national and ethnic groups live and work side by side, in harmony. Our city’s character and prosperity has been shaped in part by our illustrious visitors. In the seventh century, Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty travelled through Xining on the Silk Road to marry King Songtsan Gampo of Tibet in a union that introduced Chinese culture to Tibet and opened up the Silk Road to centuries of flourishing trade. Today, Xining faces a new challenge of history. We are working tirelessly to enhance our infrastructure and upgrade our industry and commercial sector for our role as a hub city on the New Silk Road. Across Xining today, you will see new homes, new roads and new transportation links such as our dazzling new railway station catering to the high-speed rail network that opened in December. We are focusing our efforts on making the best use of our natural resources and developing our key industries such as the production of lithium batteries for electric vehicles and the production of Tibetan carpets, which are being sold everywhere from Sydney to Berlin to the US. As the city’s mayor, however, I am determined that as we modernise, we safeguard our
ecology and ensure that we create a green, liveable city for our citizens and for the many people who will come to Xining from China and abroad in the years to come. We have taken effective steps to reduce air pollution, plant trees, clear our roads of polluting vehicles and create green spaces across our city in recent years and will continue that mission. Our city will only prosper in future if it cares for and nurtures its ecology and environment. In Xining today, we stand at the crossroads of history. We have in our hands a historic opportunity to be part of an exciting new chapter in the story not just of China but of trade and commerce across the continents. Our responsibility is to rise to that challenge and play our place in a world of exciting new commercial and cultural connections along the New Silk Road. Many of you picking up this City Guide to Xining – a city thousands of miles away from your offices and workplaces overseas – may have heard little or nothing about our city. As you will discover, however, we are much closer than you might imagine and we have an extraordinary future ahead of us, where our destinies are intertwined. The New Silk Road offers us a way to overcome the barriers of geography and nationality and hold out the hand of friendship across continents. Xining is opening up to the world, and I hope you can join us on the journey of discovery and opportunity that lies ahead.
Xining City Guide
Creating a liveable, green city Xining is a centre for culture as well as for commerce – and its leaders have seized on the importance of creating a liveable, green city for its residents
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t the Grand Theatre in Xining, the ticket office is doing brisk business as it takes bookings for a remarkably diverse line-up of events that includes a performance by an Australian company of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro and the ballroom dancing sensation Burn The Floor. Entertainment of this cosmopolitan kind would have been hard to imagine before the striking new theatre complex covering 36,000 square metres, including a concert hall, theatre and multifunctional hall opened in 2010 with a Mandarin-language version of the Broadway hit Mamma Mia. It was a runaway success, and the theatre has since been serving up a rich international diet of entertainment for the residents of Xining that will this autumn and winter include the operas Carmen and La Traviata.
Local heroes Not all of the imported shows attract sell-out crowds, one of the theatre managers concedes. “The market is still growing and it still has a long way to go,” he says diplomatically as we tour the complex. “People in Xining still like to see the Chinese stars most – famous pianists for example – when they come to perform here.” But the venue is a community venue and has a multitude of uses. As we tour the complex, the stage of the Grand Theatre is being prepared for a Teacher’s Day performance that will see some 800 students from the city perform to a guaranteed sell-out audience. The building of the theatre complex is one of a number of steps taken to upgrade the living
A wetland park in the heart of Xining
environment in Xining in recent years, transforming it from a relative backwater to a frontline city on the New Silk Road. That transformation is being handled with an overriding imperative in mind: to ensure Xining is a green and liveable city as well as a commerce hub for the new wave of business with Central Asia and beyond that the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy will bring.
in fresh air. You can feel the air is full of oxygen. It is a very good environment for people living and working in the city. When they come here they relax and feel good about themselves.” As he speaks, a procession of young couples walks through the park to have photographs taken ahead of their weddings.The park has become one of the favourite locations for wedding shoots since it opened.
Green spaces A quiet example of the policy at work is in the wetland park spanning two sides of one of three rivers running through Xining. The park with lush riverside walkways, trees and picnic spots runs along a 2.4km stretch of river and cost RMB300 million to create. Li Dongbing, a warden at the park which opened two years ago and is the biggest urban wetland park in Qinghai province, says it has become a much-loved recreational resource for the city. “It was built as part of our city government’s goal to make Xining a happy, liveable city. When you come here, you can breathe easily and breathe
Cleaner air Xining’s progressive mayor Zhang Xiaorong is adamant that creating a cleaner, greener environment is critical to the city’s future prospects. “I don’t believe Xining will attract investors without clean air or a beautiful environment,” he tells Euromoney. “As a city set on a high latitude, we see ecological conservation as a priority. We are in the west of China and the climate is dry and we have a low level of green cover. “A beautiful city should have good green cover and clear air and that is why we make ecological conservation a priority. The
competitiveness of our city depends on our ecology. As mayor, I intend to plant trees and tackle pollution.” Because of its climate and setting surrounded by mountains, Xining used to rank as one of the most polluted cities in China, but policies of recent years have triggered a remarkable change in the quality of the city’s air. In 2013, Xining recorded clear air days for just over 60% of the year. In 2015, the city expects to record clear air days on an impressive 83.5% of the year. “Pollution levels are much lower than before,” says Zhang. “We have shut down many heavy polluting industries. We have also adopted some measures to control the dust pollution in construction areas. We are taking 88,000 cars with excessive pollution off the roads every year. And our winter calefaction is now natural gas instead of coal.” These measures – combined with the continual upgrading of the city’s facilities and cultural venues – are aimed at ensuring that Xining is a city where people want to live as well as to work.
Xining City Guide
Small city is towering giant of northwest With nearly 2.3 million residents, Xining is a relatively small city in Chinese terms. But its influence is immense and its contribution to the region’s economy far outweighs its size as a world of new opportunity opens up along the New Silk Road
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t is the most spectacular view in Xining and arguably one of the best views in northern China. From the revolving restaurant on the Pearl of Plateau tower high above the city, you look out over a strikingly unusual and distinctive metropolis. It takes the restaurant one hour and forty minutes to do a complete revolution. Start on the right table and you can tuck into your first course while gazing out over a bustling cityscape spread out in the bowl of a mountain valley with high-rise tower blocks and a maze of ultra-modern roads and infrastructure. By the time you get to dessert, you will be looking out over magnificent and almost deserted grasslands rolling towards the horizon – the beginning of the great Qinghai-Tibetan plateau that stretches out from the very edges of the city of Xining. This breathtaking contrast – seen from the RMB50 million tower donated by the Shanghai municipal government in 2008 and designed by those responsible for the famous Oriental Pearl TV Tower in Shanghai – is the key to understanding the uniqueness of Xining. It is a city set amid the most extraordinary geography with a wealth of natural resources on its doorstep and an economic and social chemistry unlike anywhere else in China. It is also a city with a hugely important role to play in the country’s ‘One Belt, One Road’ approach as China builds the foundation for a New Silk Road
Provincial heavyweight
“It is a city set amid the most extraordinary geography with a wealth of natural resources on its doorstep and an economic and social chemistry unlike anywhere else in China”
Xining is the capital of Qinghai province. It accounts for just 1.06% of the province’s area but 43.2% of its population. The Xining population accounted for 46.8% of the province’s GDP in 2014. This year, the figure is expected to rise to more than 50% as the city’s dynamic growth continues apace. GDP grew at an impressive rate of between 13.5% and 15% a year from 2011 to 2014. This year, city officials predict GDP growth of 10% – lower than in recent years but comfortably higher than the national average and 2-3% higher than the rate for the rest of the province. Consumer spending in Xining accounts for 67.2% of spending for the whole of Qinghai province. When you look out from the Pearl of Plateau tower at the forbidding expanse beyond the city’s borders, it is clear why there is such a concentration of economic power within the metropolitan area. The city sits at 2,200 metres above sea level while most parts of Qinghai province are around 3,000 metres, making Xining a relatively comfortable and liveable city compared to the harsher highlands surrounding it.
Beating heart Xining is the beating heart of Qinghai. It is the centre of politics, economics, technology, culture, transport, medicine and education. All the universities of Qinghai province are in Xining, as are all the major hospitals.
Made up of four districts, three counties and a nationallevel economic-technological development area, Xining has a total area of 7,665 square kilometres, an urban area of 380 square kilometres and a resident population of 2.29 million. Because of its altitude and climate, it is known nationally as the ‘summer city’ or the ‘cool city’ – a powerful draw for domestic tourism – and enjoys unique advantages because of its rich natural resources, abundant hydropower potential, salt lakes, minerals, oil and natural gas. Most significantly, Xining is a transport hub not just for the province but for the western channel of the New Silk Road. With the Qinghai to Tibet and the Lanzhou to Xinjiang highspeed railways completed, Xining’s gleaming new RMB2.6 billion railway station – which opened in December 2014 – can handle a freight volume of 73 million tonnes a year. When a further high-speed line to Chengdu and Kunming opens as the next stage of the network’s development, that volume will climb to nearly 100 million tonnes. Xining’s international airport has a passenger throughput of 8 million and handles 24,000 tonnes of cargo a year. It operates 59 domestic flights to all major cities across China except Lanzhou, as well as flights to Bangkok, Seoul and Taipei. It is the most important airport in northwest China.
Xining City Guide
Xining’s cityscape (left); employees work at the Qinghai Guoxin Aluminium Industry Incorporated Company workshop in Xining (right)
The Xining expressway connects Lanzhou in the east, Geermu (Golmud) in the west, the Sanjiangyuan region in the south and the Hexi corridor in the north. With the Beijing-Tibet expressway, two national roads and 12 other highways, Xining is a road hub for the northwest of China with 120,000km of road around it connecting the region to central, western and southern Asia.
Natural bounty Few areas in China or the region are blessed with such a wealth of natural resources. A total of 129 minerals have been found in the province, and the mineral resources of the province are valued at RMB17 trillion – 13% of China’s total mineral resources. The most striking feature of the province is its astonishing salt lakes, which provide China with rich reserves of sodium chloride, potassium chloride, magnesium salts, lithium chloride and strontium ore – accounting for 90% of national reserves. Potassium salt in Qinghai accounts for 79% of national reserves and magnesium salt accounts for 93.5%. Qinghai’s lithium reserves account for one third of
the world’s reserves of saline lake lithium resources, while lithium chloride accounts for more than 90% of proven national reserves. Qinghai also boasts rich reserves of copper, lead, zinc, cobalt and gold as well as the country’s leading reserves of asbestos, quartzite and limestone. Oil and natural gas resources rank 13th and eighth respectively in the country. Qinghai has one of the top four gas fields in China. Qinghai is the source of three major rivers – the Yellow, the Yangtze and the Lancang – and has a wealth of hydropower resources as a result, particularly on the Yellow and Yangtze rivers. Estimates put the total hydropower reserves of the province at 3.3% of the national total.
Industrial muscle The industrial muscle of Qinghai is concentrated in Xining, which has developed a network of industrial zones in recent years including Ganhe industrial park, Nanchuan industrial park, Dongchuan industrial, biological science and technology industrial park and Beichuan industrial park. Xining has concentrated its
efforts in eight pillar industries: new energy, new materials, non-ferrous metal smelting and processing, special chemicals, deep processing of plateau animals and plants, Tibetan carpets, wool spinning, equipment manufacturing, new building materials, energy conservation and environmental protection. Xining also serves as an important producing base of special steel, electrolytic aluminium, Tibetan carpets and numerical control machines for the whole of China. Xining is also a base for the burgeoning solar power industry, with an annual output of 14,500 tonnes of polycrystalline silicon and 4,000 tonnes of monocrystalline silicon as well as polysilicon solar cells and photovoltaic (PV) components. The city aims to continue its development to become an important new energy base for China and the next step will be to create a silicon materials and PV manufacturing industry chain. Already, it is home to a rapidly developing lithium battery production centre – producing batteries that power mobile phones and the increasingly popular electric vehicles seen in cities worldwide.
Xining has an annual output of 3,750 tonnes of li-ion battery cathode materials. The metals industry is also extremely well developed in Xining. The city has an output of 2.2 million tonnes of electrolytic aluminium, 1.3 million tonnes of special steel and 1.2 million tonnes of steel, making it a major domestic metal smelting and deep processing base.
New horizons With its meticulously planned strategies for economic development and its heady pace of growth, Xining will continue to rise in prominence as it enters a new era of commerce under the national ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy. That policy makes the pace of development and the sense of vision critical in reshaping the city’s infrastructure, economy and industrial base to meet the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead on the New Silk Road. As its modernization and development continues, the view across the city for visitors to the revolving restaurant at the top of the Pearl of Plateau tower will become even more dazzling and impressive.
Xining City Guide
Magical appeal of Tibetan carpets The traditional handicraft of making Tibetan carpets has been transformed into a multi-million-dollar industry in Xining – and the opening of the New Silk Road will see the carpets flying to new markets throughout the world
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n a vast aircraft-hangar sized workshop on the southern outskirts of Xining, hundreds of women toil on gigantic imported mechanical looms as fine carpets of every imaginable size, colour and design are slowly woven together. Outside the factory gates, thousands more women in homes across Xining use small hand looms to make individual carpets, expertly working the wool as they produce the exotic and unique carpets that have been made by their ancestors in Qinghai and Tibet for centuries. Meanwhile, more than 7,000km away in St Petersburg, customers line up to buy the carpets in one of the first of a chain of overseas shops that cater to global demand. These three threads – the factory and homes in Xining and the shop in St Petersburg –tell the colourful story of the successful commercialization of a traditional skill that is now spreading from Qinghai’s capital Xining around the world. In a hi-tech world where business is done at the push of a button, it is the refreshingly old-
fashioned story of the continuing appeal of a commodity that is as much in demand in homes today as it was centuries ago: A beautiful carpet to cherish for life. And in a fitting twist to the story, the carpets being made in Xining today are following the same route from Qinghai around the world as they have done throughout the centuries – along the Silk Road. The difference today, of course, is that with the help of 21st century infrastructure and communication networks, they go much faster and further and arrive on doorsteps in Russia, the US, Europe and Asia far sooner.
Weaving wonders It is Qinghai’s unique geography that makes the carpets so special, says Ma Xin Min, general manager of the Tibetan Sheep Carpets Group, as he proudly shows off a collection of ornately patterned hand-made rugs in his factory’s showroom. “The art of Tibetan carpets goes back 2,200 years and this area is renowned around the
world for weaving carpets. The Qinghai-Tibetan plateau is 2,500 metres above sea level and the hair of Tibetan sheep grows to 22cm in length. They are sheared only once a year, between June and August.” The unique material provided by the sheep from the plateau provides a particularly hardy and fine wool for the manufacture of the carpets. His factory also produces carpets made with yak hair, which is renowned for its softness but comes at a premium: three times the price of sheep hair. Ma’s factory employs more than 12,000 but 70% of them weave carpets in their homes, working to designs and using looms provided by the company. The rest make carpets on modern machines at the factory imported from Europe since 2008. The factory turns out a staggering 1.68 million square metres of carpets a year and sells in countries and territories including the US, Germany, the UK, Russia, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong. It also makes Muslim prayer mats that are sold throughout Asia and the Middle East. The appeal of Tibetan carpets is global and growing. Ma says there are powerful reasons for their popularity. “They are principally made by hand and the weaving technique is very unique and idiosyncratic,” he said. Tibetan carpet making in particular uses a knotting method not used in other countries and regions. “They aren’t just carpets – they’re works of art. They are very special and they have a different feel to them. The other element is the Tibetan culture that gives the carpets their distinctive design and
“The carpets being made in Xining today are following the same route from Qinghai around the world as they have done throughout the centuries – along the Silk Road”
Xining City Guide
colours. This culture is very famous throughout the world.”
Domestic surge The Tibetan Sheep Group encompasses 13 enterprises and produces 48 types of hand-made and machine-made carpets. One of its objectives is to make Xining the centre for Tibetan carpet production. The carpet factory in Xining was founded more than 50 years ago and moved to its current home in 1996. Until 2008, all of its carpets were exported but since then there has been a surge in demand from the domestic market. “There is a tremendous amount of potential in China,” says Ma. “In 2008, the economic crisis hit the US and Europe and demand slowed down. In China, though, demand is growing rapidly. There are a lot of people who want carpets for their homes. People are going up in the world and demand is rising. “The economy in China is getting better day by day and living standards have improved. People have money and they can afford to buy high quality carpets. China is now the number one country in the world for buying carpets as well as the number one country for making carpets. That is why we are paying more attention to the domestic market.” On a guided tour of the huge workshop, one of the factory managers points out a loom producing brightly coloured large floor carpets. “These are for Xinjiang province,” she says, referring to the neighbouring far northwest province of China. “People there have large houses and it is cold so there is a long tradition of using carpets in their home and now that the area is more prosperous, we find more and more business coming from Xinjiang and other northern provinces.” Before 2008, the company’s chief business was hand-made carpets for export. Then it imported its
giant industrial looms from Europe, allowing it to expand into machinemade carpets which have opened the door to a whole new world of trade. Being less labour-intensive, they produce carpets that are less expensive than the hand-made ones. “As a result, many more people can afford them,” says Ma.
Westward bound The New Silk Road has turned the focus of Ma’s company to Central Asia, as road and rail links put Xining within easy reach of a host of new markets. “We want to increase our business there,” Ma says. “We want to open our own shops to sell carpets there. Qinghai province is very important to the ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy. The old Silk Road crosses this area. It carried Muslim culture and Buddhist culture around the world. You can see the Muslim culture expressed in the carpets that travelled along the Silk Road from Iran. Another route crossed Tibet and took a totally different culture around the world. “There are two main types of carpet in the world now. The first one is Persian rugs. The second is Tibetan rugs. Persian carpets have a history of 3,000 to 4,000 years. Tibetan carpets have a history of more than 2,000 years.” Ma’s target markets with the opening up of the New Silk Road are countries such as Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan, which have traditionally sourced their carpets from Turkey. The opening of the corridors of communication will, he hopes, persuade them to turn their eyes eastwards. As well as its shop in St Petersburg, the company has three shops in Moscow, two in Kazakhstan and one in Belarus. The aim is to expand that network significantly as the New Silk Road branches out across Central Asia.
Unbroken thread A traditional handicraft has become a global phenomenon as the appeal
of Tibetan carpets continues to grow. From Sydney to San Francisco, there are customers for the Qinghai Tibetan Sheep Carpet Group as well as a flourishing domestic market. It has, however, become a truly international operation. The company is holding talks with companies from Berlin to talk about setting up outlets for its carpets in the German capital. Meanwhile, it has drafted in experts from overseas to teach its employees new skills. In an interesting meeting of different cultures within the same industry, experts from Pakistan have been brought to Xining to teach hand stitching of carpets to employees. Meanwhile, experts from Belgium have visited to train staff in the using of the vast imported looms
used for machine-made carpets. Globalization has clearly made its mark on a traditional industry that has always held a fascination for foreigners looking in on one of the less visited corners of China. But it has done nothing to dim the mystique of Tibetan carpets. More than 100 years ago, a European traveller on the Tibetan plateau described his wonder as he stumbled across “a courtyard entirely filled with the weaving looms of men and women workers” making what he described as “beautiful” rugs. Today, as ‘One Belt, One Road’ opens the way to new opportunities, the future for Tibetan carpets looks certain to be every bit as exotic and colourful as their past.
Xining City Guide
Rising to a historic challenge Xining has a historic opportunity to raise its profile and become a hub city with the creation of the New Silk Road under China’s visionary ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy. Mayor Zhang Xiaorong tells Euromoney how the city is rising to the challenge
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ayor Zhang Xiaorong is a man who feels the hand of history on his shoulder. A native of Qinghai province, he has taken office at a time when Xining has an unparalleled opportunity to raise its profile and become one of China’s key cities. As he outlines his vision for the future of his city, Zhang speaks with awe and excitement at the size of the task ahead to ensure that Xining rises to the challenge. “In the 30 years since the opening up of China, much of the development has been in the east of the country,” he says in an interview with Euromoney in the city’s atmospheric Qinghai Hotel. “Cities along the coast have developed very quickly and people’s lives have been improved immeasurably. Our city stands at a very important point strategically in the Silk Road. It is a hub of the eastern cities along the Silk Road, so in the future we have to make sure that we are ready to play the role of a hub. “We have to accelerate the development of logistics and the concentration of human resources and green finance and new materials in our city. Xining has a very big role to play in the future development of culture and commerce along the Silk Road.” The crackle and energy of Zhang’s rhetoric mirrors the frenetic buzz of the city around him. There is a fierce urgency and a sense of restless purpose in every quarter as new highways, new power networks and new buildings take shape at an extraordinary pace. The hum of building work
“Xining has a very big role to play in the future development of culture and commerce along the Silk Road”
continues night and day. This is a city waking up to a new economic reality and a new world of opportunity that most of its citizens and businesses have not yet fully grasped.
Global connections Zhang, who took office in May, bubbles with enthusiasm as he shows the map of high-speed railways that pass through Xining. The lines, extending thousands of miles in all directions, make Xining a key node city in the vast area known as the Silk Road Economic Belt. The most important connection along the New Silk Road, says Zhang, is the Lanzhou-Urumqi express railway – the longest railway in northwest China running nearly 2,000km from Gansu province to
Urumqi in Xinjiang and passing through Xining. The half-century-old line has been upgraded to a high-speed line, meaning it now takes only 10 hours to travel from Xining to Urumqi – a connection that opens up a wealth of opportunity for trade with neighbouring Central Asia. Simultaneously, a XiningGolmud-Korla railway connecting China to Pakistan is now under construction, These two railways not only complement the existing rail network of Xining, but bring historical opportunities for resource integration and common development with Central Asia in this process of accelerated opening up. Another key link in the New Silk Road is the Qinghai to Lhasa
line which opened in 2006 to great fanfare as the world’s highest railway line, climbing to 5,072 metres above sea level as it crosses the Tibetan Plateau. That spectacular line has already been extended to Shigatse in Tibet and, if extended to Nepal in future, will open the door to huge commercial possibilities through the collaborative development of Xining and southern Asia. Meanwhile, high-speed railways linking Xining to Chengdu and Xining to Kunming among other lines are being planned – all of which will reinforce Xining as the key strategic city in China in connecting the country to western, central and southern Asia. As well as its rail links, highways throughout western China to Xining
Xining City Guide
are being upgraded and built to improve connections with the rest of the country and westwards to the borders of Central Asia. Xining’s international airport is meanwhile becoming an increasingly important hub for the region, the mayor said. It handles some 8 million passengers and 24,000 tonnes of cargo a year with 57 domestic and overseas routes. There are direct flights to every major city in China except Lanzhou and direct flights to Bangkok, Seoul and Tapei. By the end of 2015, there will be direct flights to Hong Kong and there are plans for further direct flights to Istanbul in Turkey and Bishkek in the strategically important neighbouring country of Kyrgyzstan. Zhang believes that as well as a transport hub, Xining will again become a hub of commerce on the Silk Road. “We will trade goods here from other cities and areas near Xining and these links mean that the distance to central and southern Asia is less,” he says. Infrastructure is only part of the recipe, however. Having the right environment and the right cultural mix are also factors that Zhang believes will be essential to Xining’s future prosperity. “It will be convenient and easy for businesses to reach these markets through Xining. We also have the advantage of climate, because the climate in Xining is very similar to that of south Asia,” he says. “Furthermore, we have mosques and the Islamic faith and so much halal food.”
Xining’s spectacular scenery
Tourist mecca The introduction of more direct flights to overseas cities has the potential to provide a major boost for the city’s tourism. Although it is a key resort for domestic tourists – who know it as the ‘cool city’ because of its altitude and climate – Xining is currently only visited by around 50,000 overseas tourists a year. The figure is remarkably low considering the stunning natural beauty of the surrounding Tibetan Plateau, and the wealth of scenery and places to visit around Xining including the breath-taking Qinghai Lake, the Ta’er Lamasery, the Chaka Salt Lake and an astonishing variety of national parks and forests. “We have abundant tourism resources,” says Zhang. “We have
magnificent mountains and rivers. The mountains around us are known as the Roof of Asia. We have wetlands and the largest nature reserve in China and a salt lake known as the Mirror of the Sky.” Spreading the word about Xining’s tourism potential has been made easier by the internet. “The internet is changing our life and our minds,” he says. “We don’t have to send delegations to foreign countries to promote ourselves any longer.” The internet can also help Xining overcome the challenges presented by its geography. “We are not so advantaged by geography but with the internet, the advantage can be with us.”
Cultural appeal Zhang’s vision for Xining is of a
dynamic city that will take on a new high-profile role as a hub along the New Silk Road but without losing its sense of history or culture. “We have a very long history – a history of more than 2,100 years,” he says. “There are 35 different nationalities in Xining living together in harmony. It is a melting pot for religion with different cultures and different nationalities. That is something we are proud of and something we must preserve.” The key to success in the hugely important and challenging years ahead, says Zhang, is confidence – and the mayor is a man with an unshakeable belief in Xining’s significant position, both in China’s remarkable past and in its thrilling future.
Xining City Guide
A taste of the high life in China’s ‘cool city’ Xining draws competitors from around the world for one of the most spectacular – and exacting – sporting events in Asia, the annual Tour of Qinghai Lake. It also has world-class sporting facilities and the potential to become a magnet for global tourists as well as international sportsmen and women
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lag-waving crowds line the streets and cheer in excitement beneath crystal clear summer skies as scores of bikes ridden by some of the world’s top cyclists flash past in one of Asia’s most gruelling and fiercely contested sporting events. For 14 consecutive summers, Xining has hosted the Tour of Qinghai Lake – an elite cycling contest covering nearly 3,000 kilometres and passing through some of China’s most spectacular scenery, including the serene beauty of Qinghai Lake. In 2015, the competition was staged over 14 days from 5-18 July and attracted 22 teams and 154 riders battling it out for prize money and performance fees of more than $1 million. The race follows a route through three provinces – Qinghai,
The annual Tour of Qinghai Lake
Gangsu and Ningxia – and is the leading road cycling race in Asia. Past winners have come from the US, Croatia, Italy, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Iraq and Kazakhstan. Some of the world’s top cycling teams take part. It is a truly international event and one of the ways in which Xining and Qinghai have promoted themselves as a top sporting and tourism destination not just for China but for competitors and visitors from around the world.
Exhilarating highs There is a distinctly festive atmosphere to the Tour of Qinghai Lake, organized by the Qinghai provincial government in association with the General Administration of Sport of China, and the State General Administration of Press,
Publication, Radio, Film and Television. Since its launch in 2002 it has attracted interest from road cycling fans around the world because of its distinctive geographical features and the diverse range of cultures along the route. For Chinese fans, it has become a massively effective platform for promoting the sport within their country. The features that make it so special for overseas riders are the extraordinary altitudes and the astonishing scenery along the route. Former competitors write with awe about the experience of taking part. Australian Jono Lovelock, from the Marco Polo Cycling Team, described it in an online blog as the “premier race” in the Asian road cycling calendar. “It is at Qinghai Lake where the hardest, fastest and most painful racing takes place,” he wrote. “Teams spend large parts of their time and budgets getting prepared to assault the high altitude and come away with the spoils.” Describing the stages around Xining as relatively comfortable at an altitude of 2,200 metres, Lovelock says the route out to Qinghai Lake includes “brutal climbs that often just fall shy of 4,000 metres”. “We are talking serious altitude – ear-popping, headache-inducing heights that mean even when climbing at gradients of just 2-3%, your legs, lungs and in my case your lower lumbar all burn like never before,” he wrote.
For the world’s top cyclists, of course, those conditions are not a deterrent but a challenge and an opportunity to test their physical fitness to the limit. And the international coverage and video clips of the annual race have helped make the incredible scenery of Xining and Qinghai Lake known around the world. Known throughout China as the ‘cool city’ for its climate and altitude, Xining welcomes 14 million domestic tourists a year but only around 50,000 foreign tourists. The success of the Tour of Qinghai Lake is beginning to even out the imbalance between foreign and domestic tourism.
Sporting chance One of the most striking architectural sights on the first day of the Tour of Qinghai Lake through Xining is the city’s ultra-modern sports centre, opened to promote healthy lifestyles with the best sporting facilities possible. The centre – with a distinctive wall of brilliant silver hexagonal shapes – opened in October 2014. It has an indoor sports hall with 7,500 seats for badminton, basketball and table tennis, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, tennis courts, gymnastics area and a full-sized international standard football pitch with artificial turf – one of only two pitches of its kind in China, the other being in Ordos in Inner Mongolia. It is a venue that seems to symbolize Xining’s modernity and ambition, and in July it hosted a special event – the Silk Road International Football Tournament 2015, which saw a Shanghai team square up against a team from Bishkek, the capital of China’s Central Asia neighbour Kyrgyzstan. The players from both teams – who are used to playing at far lower altitudes – had to prepare carefully for the showdown at 2,250 metres above sea level, spectators said, and Shanghai emerged winners of the inaugural competition with a
Xining City Guide
Six must-see tourist destinations in and around Xining 1. Qinghai Lake The largest inland salt lake in China covers 4,500 square kilometres and is famous for its mists and blue water. It is surrounded by atmospheric grasslands where sheep, cattle and horses graze and has a bird sanctuary that is habitat for 100,000 migrating birds.
2. Sangjianyuan National Nature Reserve: This is the largest and highest natural wetland in China, covering an area of 150,000 square kilometres and with inhabitants that include Tibetan antelopes, gazelles and yaks.
3. Mengda Nature Reserve: This reserve is just over 100km southeast of Xining and is famed for its scenery and mild climate. Set up in 1980 it features waterfalls and the Mengda Heavenly Lake.
4. Dongguan Grand Mosque This mosque in Xining has a 600-year history and is the largest in northwest China, covering an area of nearly 12,000 square metres. Its prayer hall can hold up to 3,000 people and it is famed for its architecture which features a mix of Islamic and Chinese styles.
Dongguan Grand Mosque
5. Ta’er Monastery This monastery is said to be the birthplace of Zongkaba, the founder of the Gelugpa Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Located on a mountainside 25km southwest of Xining, it dates back to the 13th century and includes scriptures halls, lamas’ residences and pagodas among a vast complex of more than 9,000 structures.
slender one-goal win. “Both teams had something of a reaction to the altitude,” says former gymnast Guo Linsheng, the manager of the Xining sports centre. Guo, who moved to Xining from Beijing, appears to sympathize with the players and says they are not alone in struggling to adapt to the thinner air. “Because of the high altitude, many people find they can’t do sports here,” he says. “At the same time, however, many competition athletes come here for high-altitude training so Xining does draw a lot of elite athletes such as runners preparing for demanding races.”
Healthy challenge As he shows us around the facilities
on a cloudy Monday afternoon when the majority of visitors are indulging in the less demanding sports of badminton and table tennis, Guo says: “When I first came here I felt very tired when I exercised. It’s normal when you are not used to living at high altitude. Now I am more used to it and in the summer I can walk 10km a day. In the winter, though, when the air is thinner, I can’t do it and I have to go shorter distances.” The centre nevertheless encourages residents to do regular exercise. Banners around the complex tell them to exercise for a stronger body, to be healthy in middle age and reminds them that a healthy body is a happy body.
6. Huzhu Tu Ethnic Tourist Area In the northeast of Qinghai, this area allows visitors to see the people and cultures of the Tu ethnic minority, famed for their singing and dancing and colourful traditional costumes. The area includes the Beishan National Forest Park, which is home to many rare birds and animals.
To encourage more people to take up sport, the centre offers 1,100 free hours a year of sports centre use to Xining residents – enough for around three hours’ exercise a day for every man, woman and child in the city. The sports centre is some 8km from the city centre in an area of new and unfinished housing blocks but has become increasingly popular, Guo says. “Many people have two apartments – one in the city centre which they use during the week and one out here where they live at weekends. “The air here is cleaner. Other people are choosing to live here because they find the environment is better. Also many younger
people are choosing to live out here because apartments are less expensive than in the city centre. In the evenings we have a lot of young people here and we cooperate with schools to encourage young people to do more sport.” Like the cyclists who travel from around the world to race across the province in one of the toughest sporting challenges on the planet, residents who take up sport and use the facilities provided for them will find that the gain is worth the pain. As Tour of Qinghai Lake competitor Jono Lovelock concludes in his blog after recalling the agonies of competitive cycling at high altitude: “If you ever have the chance, go to Qinghai Lake. It really is breathtaking.”
Leading China cities
History-making Hangzhou is China’s best city Its famous West Lake has been celebrated by poets and writers since the ninth century. Now Hangzhou – which will host the 2022 Asian Games – has been named Best China City 2015 in the first survey of its kind by Euromoney CITIES IN CHINA face a constant dilemma as they race to improve their infrastructure to keep up with their country’s astonishing pace of economic development. How do they modernize without sacrificing their heritage and liveability? In the rush to be economically competitive, some cities risk being overwhelmed by change and losing their character, sometimes seeing their historic districts lost beneath urban pollution and the wrecking ball of progress, their citizens’ lives diminished. By careful and intelligent planning, however, many more cities escape this fate. One Chinese city in particular that has impressively maintained its quality of life in the face of great change is Hangzhou, winner of the inaugural Euromoney Best China City 2015 survey. The capital of China’s southeastern Zhejiang province, Hangzhou has been celebrated by poets and artists since the ninth century for its stunning West Lake, which features islands, temples, pavilions, arched bridges and the 1,000-year-old, fivestorey Leifeng Pagoda. At the same time, it has created a healthy economic environment that welcomes investors and provides outstanding conditions for businesses and residents alike – putting people ahead of infrastructure to ensure its continuing success. “This history-laden city is moving well with the times, attracting investment from around the world and receiving praise from citizens for several aspects of day-to-day life in the city,” Euromoney managing director Christopher Fordham said at a presentation ceremony.
Top marks Four other cities were given top honours in the awards, which were described by Fordham as an authoritative ranking of the best cities in the country. Shenzhen was named best city for Innovation Technology and also won the Best City for Environment award. Shanghai, meanwhile, was named Best City for Financial Competitiveness. Suzhou won the award for Best City for Forward Visibility of Tax Liabilities while Chengdu, capital of western Sichuan province, won the award for Best City for healthcare. The winners were chosen on the basis of hard data and executives’ opinions from a broad variety of sources to produce definitive rankings in what will become an annual survey to
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SPECIAL REPORT : CHINA CITIES · September 2015
identify the best Chinese city. Cities were judged on a broad spectrum of categories. Hangzhou was ranked top in a number of fields including law and order and security, mass transport, tax system, ability to attract foreign investment, technological infrastructure and promotion of green policies. Beijing scored best for education, with Hangzhou in second place, and also received the highest score for hard infrastructure and availability of city employees. Shenzhen was ranked top for sustainability, followed by Hangzhou. Shenzhen was a runaway winner in the environment category, scoring 83.6 out of 100 to second place Hangzhou’s 49.6, with Shanghai in third place on 47.9. In technology and innovation, Hangzhou was also second to Shenzhen, with Suzhou in third place ahead of Beijing and Shanghai. Beijing scored highest for long-distance travel, followed by Shanghai and Hangzhou, while Chengdu got the top score for roads and driving experience followed by Hangzhou and Shenzhen. In the final overall rankings, Hangzhou finished top in a field of six ahead of Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Suzhou and Chengdu.
Sporting chance At a ceremony attended by more than 500 delegates from over 30 countries, Fordham said China was the natural choice for a new programme of city surveys. “China’s cities are as diverse as they are exciting,” he said. “This country has forged an incredible growth pattern and the continued success of all major cities is expected. Competition in all the categories of these awards was strong.” He concluded: “I believe that the best years are ahead for China, for the province of Zhejiang and the city of Hangzhou. As China’s economy continues its transition into a worldclass one, this affluent region with its innovative mindset and established advanced manufacturing base offers the most ideal conditions in all of China for more domestic companies like Alibaba and Geely to rise and flourish from.” Hangzhou’s success comes at a time when it has been confirmed as host of the 2022 Asian Games – a showpiece event that will further raise its profile and will play a key role in the future development of the city, according to its mayor, Zhong Hongming. Beijing will host the Winter Olympics in the same year.
www.euromoney.com
China cities 2015 Overall Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Beijing 4 Shenzhen 5 Suzhou 6 Chengdu
Score (out of 700) 526 524 515 504 486 464
Hard infrastructure Rank City 1 Beijing 2 Shanghai 3 Chengdu 4 Hangzhou 5 Suzhou 6 Shenzhen
Score (out of 100) 86.8 81.3 80.1 70.5 65.0 53.1
Technology & innovation Rank City 1 Shenzhen 2 Hangzhou 3 Suzhou 4 Beijing 5 Shanghai 6 Chengdu
Score (out of 100) 92.4 86.7 77.4 77.4 73.6 57.6
Education Rank City 1 Beijing 2 Hangzhou 3 Chengdu 4 Shanghai 5 Shenzhen 6 Suzhou
Score (out of 100) 90.2 87.0 81.6 74.7 74.2 72.4
Healthcare Rank City 1 Chengdu 2 Hangzhou 3 Beijing 4 Shanghai 5 Suzhou 6 Shenzhen
Score (out of 100) 87.8 81.4 73.0 71.6 66.8 54.6
Environment Rank City 1 Shenzhen 2 Hangzhou 3 Shanghai 4 Suzhou 5 Chengdu 6 Beijing
Score (out of 100) 83.6 49.6 47.9 45.1 42.9 32.1
Tax system Rank City 1 Beijing 2 Shanghai 3 Hangzhou 4 Suzhou 5 Shenzhen 6 Chengdu
Score (out of 100) 88.9 86.9 83.4 78.3 71.1 56.3
Financial competitiveness
Healthcare accessibility
Rank City 1 Shanghai 2 Suzhou 3 Shenzhen 4 Hangzhou 5 Beijing 6 Chengdu
Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Suzhou
Score (out of 100) 87.8 80.8 75.1 67.7 66.5 58.1
BY SECTOR Quality of mass transit transport Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Suzhou 3 Shanghai
Score 6.3 5.9 5.8
Law, order and security Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Beijing
Score 6.7 6.4 6.3
Quality of roads and driving experience Rank City 1 Chengdu 2 Hangzhou 3 Shenzhen
Score 5.7 5.5 5.4
Quality of long distance travel Rank City 1 Beijing 2 Shanghai 3 Hangzhou
Score 6.3 6.3 6.0
Technology & innovation: Availability of funding Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Beijing 3 Suzhou
Score 6.3 6.1 5.9
Quality of technological infrastructure Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Shenzhen
Score 6.5 6.07 6.06
Education: Availability of qualified employees Rank City 1 Beijing 2 Shanghai 3 Shenzhen
Score 6.6 6.17 6.12
Sickness and absenteeism of employees Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Shenzhen
Score 6.0 5.4 5.2
Score 6.3 6.02 6.00
Promotion of green policies and initiatives Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shenzhen 3 Suzhou
Score 6.5 6.1 5.7
Air quality Rank City 1 Shenzhen 2 Hangzhou 3 Suzhou
Score 6.1 5.2 5.0
Efficiency of tax system Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Suzhou 3 Shenzhen
Score 6.2 5.8 5.7
Forward visibility of tax liabilities Rank City 1 Suzhou =1 Hangzhou 2 Shenzhen
Score 6.0 6.0 5.7
Financial competitiveness: Connectivity Rank City 1 Beijing 2 Shanghai 3 Hangzhou
Score 6.29 6.27 6.2
Breadth and diversity of financial services Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Beijing 3 Shanghai
Score 6.33 6.29 6.2
Quality and efficiency of regulatory framework Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Shenzhen
Score 6.00 5.98 5.94
Ability to attract foreign direct investment Rank City 1 Hangzhou 2 Shanghai 3 Shenzhen
Score 6.00 5.98 5.94
