The BRI has transformed the economies of many cities of China and Chongqing is not an exception. It has increased its infrastructure, manufacturing potential, capacity of trans-regional connectivity, virtual reliability, scope and utility of digitalization, world-wide e-commerce acceptability, banking & finance integration and last but not the least human capital in China and the world alike. Now it is a connecting hub and pivotal to BRI’s strategic expansion and connectivity with Central Asia and the European Union.
The megacity of Chongqing stands as the world’s largest city by population, embodying a hub of transit, transformation, and transmission. This distinction renders it a unique nexus of innovation, modernization, and digitized industries. Chongqing, historically one of China’s old industrial bases, boasts prominence as a major center for automobile manufacturing, military production, as well as iron, steel, and aluminum industries within the nation. Its industrial landscape is predominantly characterized by heavy industry, yet recent years have witnessed robust growth in its electronics and related sectors.
Interestingly, Southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality has set its regional GDP growth target at about 6 percent for 2024 which is good omen for the overall GDP of China. It also aims to increase added value of industries above the designated size by seven percent, investment in fixed assets by four percent and general public budget revenue by six percent, while limiting the consumer price index increase to about three percent.
Even in 2023, Chongqing’s GDP surpassed three trillion Yuan (about $421.54 billion) for the first time, marking it as the fourth city in the country to achieve this milestone. It grew by 6.1 percent year-on-year, reaching over 3.01 trillion Yuan. Furthermore, the service industry in Chongqing continued to thrive, with major service enterprises in the city generating a total operating revenue of 517.9 billion Yuan from January to November 2023, representing a 9.2 percent increase compared to the same period in 2022. Economically, Chongqing has zealously showcased its industry strengths, such as automotive and motorcycle components, chemicals and advanced technology.
As a strategic base for the BRI Chongqing in Southwest-central China has played a key role over the past decade in connecting it with the Yangtze River Economic Belt and ensuring its high-quality development, according to a senior official in the municipality. Evidently, the construction of BRI projects has provided strong impetus for Chongqing to break through its bottlenecks and develop itself as an inland open city. The BRI has immensely improved the transportation network, established platforms, promoted economic and trade cooperation, and created a favorable business environment.
Chongqing has successively explored two major transportation routes, the China-Europe freight train services, and the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor striving to open up an international logistics corridor and accelerate the development of an inland international logistics hub.
The railway has connected more than 100 major cities in Europe and Asia, while the corridor has covered 465 ports in 120 countries and regions around the world. Its airport has become an international hub with about 110 international routes.
It has attracted more than US$29.35 billion foreign direct investments and more than 300 Fortune Global Companies to invest in Chongqing during 2013-2023.
It seems that Chongqing will focus on a campaign to expand the channels system led by the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor and continue to promote the interconnection of open channels. It will promote the upgrade of infrastructure, optimize the multimodal transportation system and continuously reduce costs and increase efficiency to better integrate into the global market.
In the past decade, Chongqing has closely focused on integrating large channels, platforms, logistics and industries to promote the continuous expansion of the open economy, the continuous improvement of development quality and efficiency, and the continuous enhancement of international competitiveness and influence.
Relying on its advantageous industries such as automobiles and electronic information, Chongqing has vigorously developed import and export trade and explored the BRI market with a focus on ASEAN countries.
The city’s annual import and export trade volume with countries involved in the BRI reached 333 billion Yuan ($45.7 billion) last year, and has attracted more than 300 Fortune Global 500 companies to invest in Chongqing.
For its next phase, Chongqing will comprehensively expand its industrial opening-up, concentrating on establishing a modern manufacturing cluster system and reinforcing its trade advantages with Belt and Road countries, particularly in electronic information and automobile manufacturing industries. Emphasizing institutional opening-up, Chongqing relies on various national-level open platforms to deepen the flow-oriented opening of goods, services, capital, and talent.
Chongqing is the bustling mega city that marks the connection point of the Belt and Road and Yangtze River Economic Belt. Chongqing has several cross-border corridors. One of the prominent routes is the China Railway Express to Europe (Chengdu and Chongqing), which starts from Chongqing Western International Logistics Hub Park, crosses the border in Xinjiang, and passes through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, and reaches Duisburg, Germany, with a total length of about 11,000 kilometers.
The journey takes only 13 days, the transport price is 1/5 of aviation, and the running time is 1/4 of maritime transport. From January to May this year, the number of China Railway Express to Europe (Chengdu and Chongqing) reached 2,319, an increase of 52 percent year-on-year.
Based on land transportation, Chongqing has also innovated and designed new models, such as rail-sea intermodal transport, further expanding the International Land-Sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC) to 393 ports in 119 countries and regions worldwide. It’s becoming a successful regional strategy under the BRI.
In summary, undoubtedly Chongqing has become a magnetic force, a connecting hub and an ideal facilitator of trans-regional trade, connectivity, automobile industry and services. It has become the launching pad to explore more international markets in ASEAN, Central Asia and Europe.
Its services sector has further enhanced its banking & financial connectivity and opening-up which has fostered its overall capacity of innovations, and modernization. Xi’s new productive forces will further enhance its green energy transformation, digitalization, smart living, qualitative manufacturing, EVs and production of lithium batteries in the days to come.
In the last decade it strategically achieved economic reliability and vibrancy in communications, cooperation in science and technology, education, cultural tourism, health, etc. Chongqing’s active participation has brought prosperity not only to the city itself but also to communities outside of China. It has played a crucial role in the growth and well-being of nations along the Belt and Road. It is building bridges, connecting nations, and shaping a brighter future for all.
Pakistan may seek guidance from Chongqing to promote green energies in the country. Pakistan, with its abundant solar resources, has immense potential for the development of the photovoltaic industry, aligning with the country’s goals of sustainable green development.
Chongqing’s cooperation with Pakistan covers a wide range of fields, including trade, business, education, etc., and there is still great potential to be further unleashed. These sectors may include agriculture, textile, mines & minerals, hi-tech and skills development in IT and science.
