Guangzhou Witnesses Fast Development of Export-oriented Economy

The export-oriented economy of Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, has moved onto a track of rapid development, a city government official said.

Deputy Mayor Shen Bonian said at a recent meeting on economic work that the city registered a record US$11.82 billion in total export volume in 2000, an increase of 19.8 percent over 1999. The city absorbed a foreign investment of US$2.99 billion last year.

Statistics show that during the Ninth Five-year Plan period ( 1996-2000), Guangzhou's exports totaled US$95.88 billion, up 63.3 percent over the Eighth Five-year Plan period (1991-1995).

Guangzhou absorbed US$14.8 billion of foreign investment over the past five years, 1.14 times the figure for the 1991-1995 period.

The city now has more than 8,000 foreign-funded enterprises, whose total industrial output value accounts for 63.6 percent of the city's total. Guangzhou has also opened 203 enterprises in over 30 countries and regions worldwide.

Shen said that Guangzhou is expected to introduce more foreign funds after China's entry into the World Trade Organization.

People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/