Bonded harbor area to sharpen Dalian's edge

Dalian, a port city in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, is revving up for the construction of a bonded harbor area, marking a milestone in the city's opening-up history, Mayor Xia Deren said.

Like a free port, a bonded harbor area offers most convenience for the flow of capital and goods.

There are at present just three such areas in China, and the Dayaowan Bonded Harbor Area is one of them.

"We will spare no efforts in advancing the construction and will make sure that the bonded harbor area is put into operation in the first half of this year," Xia asserted.

As the latest move to sharpen the city's competitive edge, the project under construction is expected to boost Dalian's strength as an international shipping center and enhance the flow of global commerce.

"Capitalizing on the opportunity of building the bonded harbor area, Dalian is poised to embrace more investment from home and abroad," Xia said.

"In accordance with requirements set out by Premier Wen Jiabao in his 2007 government work report, the focus in our investment promotional work will be shifted to valuing investment project quality," he added.

Fortune Global 500 companies, headquarters of multinationals, funding firms and research and development (R&D) institutions are a main target for the city government's efforts in drawing investment, Xia emphasized.

The authorities encourage the establishment of advanced manufacturing facilities and R&D centers in the city, Xia said.

High-end manufacturing industries, such as very large scale integration and automobile engines, will receive priority support from government, he added.

Dalian will also take advantage of the recent worldwide trend among developed economies to outsource service business to lower-cost regions, by taking the opportunity to develop modern service industries, including logistics, finance, tourism, informationconsultancy, and conventions and exhibitions, said Xia.

High-tech industry parks, where a batch of colleges and institutions are clustered, provide an effective platform for the development of creative industries such as software, animation and biological engineering, he said.

Due to preferential policies and a favorable business climate, development zones have long been seen as bridgeheads for securing state-of-the-art technology, managerial expertise and high-quality professionals.

The provincial government has designated five coastal development zones as key bases to attract investments from around the world. They are expected to drive growth of the provincial economy and also exert a positive influence on neighboring provinces.

The five provincial development zones are connected by "one line" a coastal road and thus enjoy an even wider appeal among investors.

With two of the five key provincial investment destinations the Changxing Island Harbor Industrial Zone and the Zhuanghe Huayuankou Industrial Park within its perimeters, Dalian enjoys a distinct advantage in further boosting its opening-up process.

So far, the number of investment projects in the Changxing Island Harbor Industrial Zone was registered at 28, worth 13.34 billion yuan in total investment value.

Among them, big projects from STX, a shipbuilding company headquartered in the Republic of Korea, and the Singapore-based IMC Group have begun construction.

The STX project in particular, which is worth $902 million in investment value and is the first overseas investment in Changxing Island, is expected to spur growth of the shipbuilding and related industries in Dalian, Xia noted.

"It will promote technological progress and industrial upgrading and eventually help Dalian grow into a top shipbuilding base in China and even in the world," he said.

The performance of another key provincial investment destination in the city, the Zhuanghe Huayuankou Industrial Park, is also impressive. It has notched up 26 projects with a total investment value of 720 million yuan.

Mayor Xia said that Dalian has reaped benefits from the provincial "five points, one line" development strategy.

Statistics show that in 2006, actual foreign investment in the city rose by 124 percent over the previous year.

While Dalian's gross domestic product increased by 16.4 percent, the total amount of pollution emitted has been reduced by 2.5 percent.

Further, the local government's fiscal revenue rose by 29.5 percent last year, hitting a record high in the past 12 years. The figure has already risen beyond 40 percent in the first two months of this year, Xia said.

Last year was also witness to a considerable increase in income for local residents.

Per capita disposable income of urban residents increased 11 percent, while growth rate of per capita net income of rural residents was 18.4 percent.

In addition to key provincial investment destinations, other industrial parks and development zones are also conducive to business development.

As most of the rural economies of the city are close to the industrial parks, progress in construction of the industrial parks will facilitate extension of industrial chains to rural areas and further promote urban expansion, Xia said.

"We will continue our efforts in building the new countryside, optimizing agricultural structures and lifting the income of rural residents," he said.

One of the ambitious goals the mayor pursues is that two counties of Dalian will be concluded in the list of top 100 Chinese counties this year.

(China Daily 03/13/2007 page20)