Hangzhou's economy has rapidly developed since its opening up in 1992. It is an industrial city with many diverse
sectors such as in light industry, agriculture, textile, It is also considered an important manufacturing base and
logistics hub for coastal China. For International students, Hangzhou is not only a perfect destination immersed
with Chinese cultural climate but also an increasingly growing metropolis.
In 2001, the GDP of the whole city amounts to RMB 156.8 billion, ranking the second among all of the provincial
capitals except for Guangzhou. The city has more than tripled GDP in the last eight years, with GDP increasing
from RMB 156.8 billion in 2001 to RMB 509.9 billion in 2009 and GDP per capita increasing from USD 3,025 to
USD 10,968.
Developed Industries
Hangzhou has a strong manufacturing sector, but the relative share of the service sector is increasing at faster
pace in recent years.
Hangzhou is the largest industrial center in Zhejiang province, with a total of 65,000 industrial enterprises. Its
industrial output rose by 25% to RMB 240 billion in 2002. The major industries in Hangzhou are textiles,
electronic & telecommunications, machinery and beverages. Some new industries including high-tech industry,
chemical processing and medicine industry are also developing in a fast pace in Hangzhou city.
Consumer Market
Hangzhou has a robust retail market. In 2002, Hangzhou's total retail sales of consumer goods increased 14% to
RMB 52 billion, the largest among all cities in the Zhejiang province.
Among various types of retail outlets, chain stores are developing at a fast pace in recent years. In 2002, sales
at chain stores amounted to RMB 6.1 billion, accounted for 11% of Hangzhou's total retail sales value. Major chain
stores in Hangzhou include Wal-Mart, Tesco, Metro, and Lotus etc.
A Wal-Mart in Hangzhou
Foreign Trade
In 2009, the annual value of import and export totaled USD 40.417 billion and of which the total value of export
reached USD 27.18 billion, down 15.9% and 19.1% over the previous year respectively. The development of
international service outsourcing acceler ated. The amount of of fshore out sourcing implementation of the city's
reached USD 919 million, up by 352%, of which the service outsourcing enterprises of offshore delivery of more
than USD 10 million was 17, up by 240%, offshore implementation of a total of USD 667 million, accounting for
72.6% of the total city.
Hangzhou received an accumulated USD 4.6 billion of actual foreign direct investment as at the end of 2002.
Major sources of foreign investment in Hangzhou include the US, Japan, Singapore, the UK and France. World
famous multinational corporations that have significant investment in Hangzhou include the US General Motors,
Merck, Motorola; German Bosch, Siemens; French Liquid-Air; Japanese Panasonic, and Toshiba, etc.
Motorola has an R&D centre in Hangzhou.
