Special Supplement: Growth highlights
A total of 14 years have passed since the establishment of the Wuxi New District in 1992. Its development through these years can be divided into four phases.
The initial stage. In November 1992, the Wuxi National Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone was set up with an allocated area of 5.45 sq km; In December 1993, the foundation stone was laid for the Wuxi-Singapore Industrial Park.
The stage of rapid development. In January 1995, the Wuxi New District was set up and its jurisdiction expanded to 83 sq km. Well-known multinational companies such as Seagate, General Electric and SHARP launched their investment projects there.
The stage of comprehensive improvement. In 2002, the district was further expanded to 141 sq km while its economic and social development entered a new era.
The stage of strategic upgrade. Early in 2005, Wuxi's local administration announced that it will develop the New District into an innovative international district featuring science and technology. Meanwhile, the district's area was once again enlarged to 220 sq km.
The Wuxi New District now administers several industrial parks, two towns and five streets, with a resident population of nearly 500,000.
In 2006, the district yielded 48.5 billion yuan ($6.4 billion) in GDP, $22.5 billion in imports and exports, a total fixed asset investment of $3.2 billion, and a fiscal revenue of $1.1 billion.
With 3 percent of the city's land, four percent of its population, and consuming five percent of its water and electricity, the Wuxi New District has realized 16 percent of the entire city's revenue, 20 percent of its industrial output, 50 percent of the city's foreign investment, and 59.2 percent of the total import and export value. Its average output intensity has reached 3 billion yuan ($390 million) per sq km.
As of 2006, its total registered foreign investment was nearly $13 billion and the foreign investment in place was more than $7 billion; 60 of the world's top 500 multinationals have invested there.
(China Daily 09/05/2007 page4)
