Yancheng Special: Port zone set to be city's economic 'propeller'

"We are making full use of our geographical advantages. This will boost our port construction program, which will, in turn, act as a massive spur for the overall development of Dafeng city itself," says Ni Xiangrong, director of the administrative committee of the Dafeng port economic zone.

Ni's almost evangelical zeal for the project that is about to transform the prospects of his home city is, perhaps, understandable when you begin to understand the scheme's wider ramifications.

Dafeng, a county-level city in Yancheng, part of the eastern Jiangsu province, enjoys an enviable location, sure to be the envy of the many freight facilities competing for business along China's east coast.