The port city of Zhangjiagang in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province, ranks third on the 2020 list of China's top 100 county-level cities. [Photo/VCG]
The annual GDP of Zhangjiagang, East China's Jiangsu province, is expected to have grown 5.5 percent year-on-year last year, and its revenue in general public budgets in 2020 reached 25.03 billion yuan ($3.86 billion), growing 1.3 percent year-on-year, demonstrating its rapid economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, local media reported on Jan 5.
Official data show that the city's industrial investment expanded by 25 percent year-on-year to 20 billion yuan last year, while its actual use of foreign capital surpassed $600 million, a year-on-year increase of 20 percent.
The city also reported investment of more than 100 billion yuan in intelligent manufacturing last year, which accounted for over 50 percent of its total industrial investment.
Multiple factors have led to the city's economic growth, especially its efforts in promoting innovative development over the past year.
As one of the most innovative cities in the country, Zhangjiagang has rolled out an array of measures to pursue high-quality development by enhancing its scientific and technological innovation capacity.
According to statistics, Zhangjiagang is now home to more than 1,100 industrial enterprises above designated size, nearly 600 high-tech companies, and over 800 scientific and technological leaders, as well as 10 new research and development (R&D) institutions. The R&D input in Zhangjiagang accounted for 2.95 percent of the city's GDP last year, and its innovation capabilities ranked fourth among all county-level cities in the country.
Zhangjiagang will accelerate its pace in the development of a modernized economy and make greater efforts to foster innovation-driven development as well as promote industrial transformation and upgrading this year, according to Han Wei, deputy Party secretary of Zhangjiagang, while delivering the government work report during the annual session of the municipal people's congress on Jan 6.