Opinion

The Expansion of "Trillion-Yuan Cities" is More Than Just About Scale

With Zhejiang's Wenzhou and Liaoning's Dalian successively announcing that their regional GDP exceeded one trillion yuan in 2025, China's roster of "trillion-yuan GDP cities" has expanded once again, bringing the total to 29. Wenzhou achieved a regional GDP of 1,021.39 billion yuan, becoming the third "trillion-yuan city" in Zhejiang province after Hangzhou and Ningbo. Dalian recorded a regional GDP of 1,000.21 billion yuan, making it the first "trillion-yuan GDP city" in Northeast China.

The continuous expansion of "trillion-yuan cities" vividly illustrates the optimization of regional development patterns and the elevation of urban capabilities, further solidifying the foundation for China's high-quality economic development.

From Shanghai's regional GDP first surpassing one trillion yuan in 2006 to the current 29 cities scattered across the nation, the widespread growth of "trillion-yuan cities" fully demonstrated the significant achievements in China's coordinated regional development. In particular, Dalian's emergence as the first "trillion-yuan city" in Northeast China marks the completion of coverage across all four major economic regions.

Among the expanding cohort of "trillion-yuan cities," there are global metropolises like Shanghai and Beijing, leading the way in cutting-edge innovation; manufacturing powerhouses like Dongguan and Wenzhou, strengthening the foundation of the real economy; and regional leaders like Dalian, shouldering the mission of revitalization. These 29 cities have blazed distinctive development paths, demonstrating that cities of varying types can achieve high-quality growth by leveraging their own advantages. This pattern of "multi-point support and coordinated synergy" has made the foundation of China's economic development more stable and resilient.

Policy

1. Chinese authorities are set to establish duty-free shops at 41 listed ports of entry to the country, including airports, sea ports and land border crossings, aiming to facilitate tax-free shopping for inbound travelers. Five government departments, including the Ministry of Finance, made the announcement on January 21.

2. The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of Communications, and Postal Savings Bank of China recently have all issued announcements to implement the optimization of the interest subsidies policy for personal consumption loans and related services.

3. China has allocated 93.6 billion yuan (about 13.37 billion U.S. dollars) in ultra-long special treasury bonds to fund equipment renewal projects across key sectors, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on January 22. The funds will support some 4,500 projects across industry, energy and power, education, healthcare, and upgrades to old residential elevators, and are expected to drive total investment exceeding 460 billion yuan.

Data

1. China issued 2.9 billion green electricity certificates in 2025, data from the National Energy Administration showed on January 22. The country has built the world's largest clean power system and carbon trading market, and its green industries continue to grow.

2. China recorded another bumper grain harvest in 2025, pushing output to a new high, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. Grain production reached about 714.9 million tonnes in 2025, an increase of 8.4 million tonnes from a year earlier. The output has stayed above 700 million tonnes for two consecutive years.

3. According to the China National Intellectual Property Administration, the number of valid invention patents held on the Chinese mainland had reached 5.32 million by the end of 2025. Driven by continuous improvements in patent quality, the economic benefits of intellectual property are being realized more rapidly.

4. According to the State Administration for Market Regulation, China developed 1,139 new national reference materials in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 61.8 percent. To date, China has cumulatively established 19,441 national reference materials, providing strong support for high-quality economic and social development.

5. China's digital industry grew rapidly during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said. The industry generated a revenue of 38.3 trillion yuan by the end of 2025, with profits of 3.1 trillion yuan. These figures represent cumulative increases of about 39.5 percent and 48.4 percent respectively compared to the end of 2020.

6. In 2025, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization demonstration area in Qingdao, Shandong, recorded imports and exports totaling 102.44 billion yuan with other SCO member states, a year-on-year increase of 37 percent. The continued expansion of import scale has facilitated trade exchanges between China and other SCO member states.

7. Chinese residents took 6.52 billion domestic trips in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 16.2 percent, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism said. In 2025, domestic tourism spending by Chinese residents reached 6.3 trillion yuan, up 9.5 percent from the previous year.

8. China implemented a new national railway timetable from January 26 as part of a regular adjustment aimed at improving network efficiency, optimizing transport supply and better supporting high-quality economic and social development, China State Railway Group said. According to the new timetable, the national rail network operates 12,130 scheduled passenger trains, an increase of 243 from the previous schedule.

9. China's total retail sales of consumer goods hit 50.1 trillion yuan in 2025, exceeding the 50 trillion yuan mark for the first time. The contribution rate of final consumption expenditure to economic growth reached 52 percent, an increase of 5 percentage points.

10. China's bamboo industry has achieved an annual output value of over 520 billion yuan, with more than 15,000 types of bamboo products available, data from the National Forestry and Grassland Administration showed. The ongoing expansion of the industry has been accompanied by gains in both production efficiency and added value for key products, generating stronger commercial returns.

(Source: Economic Daily)