Shanghai
has been an international port for over
a thousand years. As a result, the city
has a cosmopolitan air and international
outlook, which attracts a large ex-pat community.
With an economy which has grown by an average
of 11% over the last decade (13.6% in 2004)
it is easy to see why Shanghai has become
a magnet for foreign investment.
Shanghai is home to 16.74
million people – larger than London
and New York combined - and has a reputation
for being the economic powerhouse of China,
a reputation which becomes explicable when
one considers that Shanghai alone contributes
nearly 25% of national taxation. Shanghai
is particularly known as a regional centre
for finance and hi-tech business. The latest
five year plan for the city states goals
including ‘sharpening the city’s
comprehensive competitive edge’ and
improving on its status as an ‘international
metropolis.’
Between now and 2010 Shanghai
will host a series of events guaranteed
to raise the international profile of the
city. In 2007 the Universal Studios Theme
Park will be completed, along with the World’s
tallest building and the Shanghai World
Financial Centre. Events from the 2008 Beijing
Olympics will spill over to Shanghai, and
the city will host the 2010 World Expo.
Within the city two districts
divided by the Huangpo River stand out as
destinations for investment. East of the
river is Pudong, home to the special economic
zone of skyscrapers, banks. West is Puxi,
which contains most of the visitor and tourist
attractions along with Plaza Hyundai.
