Chongqing-At a press conference on August 17, Hu Henghua, Mayor of Chongqing Municipal People's Government, stated that the city's economy has changed from high-speed growth to high-quality development, where people's lives have experienced a historical transition from piecemeal prosperity to moderate prosperity.

"The decade of the new era is marked by historic achievements and changes in Chongqing," said Hu.

A press conference about Chongqing in the past decade of China was held on August 17. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

Per capita GDP has doubled in the decade

According to Hu, since 2012, Chongqing has delivered an exciting economic report, with GDP growing from 1.16 trillion yuan (about 171.1 billion U.S. dollars) to 2.79 trillion yuan in 2021, and local per capita GDP doubling to 87,000 yuan.

Chongqing's GDP increased from 1.16 trillion yuan in 2012 to 2.79 trillion yuan in 2021. (iChongqing/ Zheng Ran)

Chongqing effectively coordinated pandemic prevention and economic growth, and its GDP grew by 4% in the first half of 2022, indicating a steady economy. Efforts to prevent and control the pandemic, work safety, and grassroots governance have driven people's sense of security to a record high, reaching 99.34% in 2021.

Through accelerating the cultivation of a world-class industrial cluster of intelligent networked new energy vehicles and emerging industries such as software information and biomedicine and pushing for the construction of the western financial center and international consumption center, the city's industrial added value grew by 6.5% annually in the past five years, and high-tech accounted for 19.1%. The value added by the service sector accounted for 52.8% of GDP.

The Smart China Expo has been held in Chongqing four times successfully. Adding value to the digital economy accounts for 27.2% of the GDP, while enterprises that contribute to intelligent transformation account for 73% of the growth in industrial production.

An overview of Chongqing at a skyrise scenic platform on the WFC. (iChongqing/ Vivian Yan)

51.7 billion dollars of foreign capital over the past five years

Developing the Belt and Road Initiative and the Yangtze River Economic Belt and relying on the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC), last year, the total value of the city's foreign trade exceeded 800 billion yuan.

The use of foreign capital in Chongqing has reached 51.7 billion dollars in the past five years.

In the construction of inland opening-up highland, Chongqing used 51.7 billion U.S. dollars in five years. (iChongqing/ Zheng Ran)

Piloting the business environment and opening up, the service sector has progressed positively. Over the past five years, more than one million new market entities have been added, bringing the total to more than 3.3 million. Chongqing is becoming a hotbed of investment, a fertile business area, and a promising place for businesses to launch.

China-Europe Railway Express (Chengdu-Chongqing) has never stopped connecting Chengdu and Chongqing, and its operation level is one of the best in China.

Chengdu-Chongqing Central line high-speed railway and Chengdu-Dazhou-Wanzhou high-speed railway are among 160 major plans.

In the future, Chongqing will partner with Sichuan Province and Chengdu to build an international comprehensive transportation hub, a world-class manufacturing cluster, Western (Chongqing) Science City, and the western financial center. Additionally, the construction of the national Yangtze River cultural park Chongqing section will be accelerated.

Sense of security reaches 99.34% in 2021

Chongqing government put 80% of the general budget to improve people's life quality. (iChongqing/ Zheng Ran)

Efforts to prevent and control the epidemic, work safety, and governance under grassroots have driven people's sense of security to reach a record high of 99.34% in 2021.

The government lifted 1.91 million rural residents out of poverty to improve their quality of life and well-being. The mileage of high-speed and urban rail transit has reached 1,023 km and 478 km, respectively. Urbanization has reached 70.3%.

Every year, Chongqing devotes about 80% of its general budget to improving the livelihood of its residents. Over the past five years, all residents' per capita disposable income has grown by 8.9%.

At night in Jiangbeizui Riverbank Park, people set up tents to enjoy the most beautiful night view with their best friends. (Photo/ Visual Chongqing)