Expert stresses 'core city' route for Shanghai

Further integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region will help Shanghai better play a leading role in the area and even the entire country, according to an expert.

Despite its size, Shanghai still trails many of its overseas counterparts in terms of its function and contribution, experts said at the Yangtze River Development Think Tank Forum held in Shanghai late last month.

Zhang Haohan, Party chief of the Jiangsu Federation of Social Science Association and director of the Yangtze River Delta Regional Joint Research Center, said New York contributes 24 percent of the United States' GDP, Tokyo 26 percent of Japan's, London 22 percent of the United Kingdom's, and Seoul 26 percent of South Korea's.