Chongqing—Chongqing is shifting its economic focus from real estate to new energy vehicles (NEVs). According to the 2025 Fortune China 500 rankings, local NEV leader SERES has surpassed Longfor Group, a long-time leader who once topped the rankings.
SERES has soared 235 spots to 169th in the rankings. The company’s deepened partnership with Huawei, new model launches, and a projected 300% revenue growth in 2024 have fueled its rise, marking a return to profitability in the competitive NEV market.
The welding workshop of Chinese vehicle manufacturer Seres Group in Liangjiang New Area, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality. (Photo/Xinhua)
For decades, the real estate sector was the backbone of Chongqing's economy. It played a pivotal role in shaping the city's skyline and provided significant employment across the construction, finance, and home goods industries.
As China's cities expanded, real estate became a key driver of economic growth, with companies like Longfor Group at the forefront. Their dominance in the rankings underscored the sector’s pivotal role in urban development and in generating local government revenues through land sales and property investments.
However, as China transitions to a new phase of high-quality development, the role of real estate is evolving. The government's macroeconomic policies, aimed at reducing financial risks from the "high leverage, high debt, high turnover" model that many real estate developers embraced, are reshaping the industry.
The focus has shifted from large-scale expansion to improving the quality of services and products, pushing the real estate sector to adapt to changing economic conditions.
Longfor Group's fall from the top spot is not necessarily an indication of the company's decline, but rather a reflection of the broader shift in the local economy. It signals a move away from land-based financial models and towards innovation-driven sectors.
SERES's rise in corporate rankings reflects a deeper shift in Chongqing’s economy, aligning with China's broader technological advancement and innovation push. This transformation focuses not only on current economic growth drivers but also on building a competitive and sustainable future.
SERES Chongqing Liangjiang Factory. (Photo/ Liu Yini)
This shift also mirrors a broader change in China's economic priorities. While wealth was once tied to tangible assets like land and capital, today’s growth is increasingly driven by innovation. Companies like SERES, which invest heavily in R&D, intellectual property, and advanced software, are generating long-term value in ways traditional industries cannot match. These intangible assets are proving to be far more sustainable and impactful than physical assets like land or concrete.
Furthermore, China's shift back toward focusing on physical industries is a strategic response to the past overemphasis on finance and real estate. For years, capital flowed away from the real economy toward speculative sectors, but now the government is encouraging a return to industries that produce tangible goods. SERES's success is a perfect example of this push to revitalize China's real economy, especially through the development of high-tech manufacturing sectors.
While competition in the EV sector remains fierce, it's clear that the industry is moving in the right direction. The shift from quantity-driven growth to quality-driven innovation is at the heart of China's broader economic transformation. Chongqing's story is not just a local one but is emblematic of the national trend towards upgrading manufacturing and embracing advanced technologies.