The Pudong New Area, an booming financial and trade zone set up in the early 1990 in China 's leading industrial center of Shanghai, has drawn an increasing number of domestic investors while at the same time drawing multinationals.

Statistics show that some 300 medium-sized and large enterprises from all over China have opened subsidiaries in Pudong.

According to sources with the area's administration committee, these businesses are mainly engaged in the area's pillar industries such as automobiles, information technology, iron and steel, household appliances, petrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

The China Shipping Group, a state-owned shipping conglomerate, for example, has established in Pudong the country's largest shipyard, the China Shipping Industry Co., Ltd., with registered capital of 200 million yuan (24 million US dollars).

The Wenzhou People's Electrical Equipment Group, a private enterprise based in Wenzhou, a city in east China's Zhejiang Province, has set up its production center in Pudong with an investment of 100 million yuan (12 million US dollars).

Analysts attribute the increase in domestic investment to the improved business environment in the area.

Since the early 1990, Pudong has built 10 major infrastructure projects, and has another 10 under way, including an international airport, a subway, and a pedestrian passage across the Huangpu River separating the area from downtown Shanghai. At least 200 billion yuan has been used for infrastructure construction to date.

Pudong is now focusing on becoming an international banking, trade, tourism, conference, and exhibition center in the next century.