Shanghai (TDI): Shanghai’s economy exceeded 5 trillion yuan (about $695.6 billion) in 2024, mayor of the east China metropolis, Gong Zheng, said Wednesday.
Shanghai’s gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to have increased by about 5% year on year in 2024, Gong said while delivering a government work report at the third session of the 16th Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress.
Shanghai also targeted GDP growth of around 5% for 2025.
The 2024 feat comes just three years after Shanghai’s GDP first crossed 4 trillion yuan.
Shanghai in 2006 became the first Chinese mainland city to have a GDP of over 1 trillion yuan.
The megacity focused on the development of new quality productive forces, introducing strategies to support industries such as blockchain, low-altitude economy, large aircraft, new energy storage, ultra-high-definition displays, new materials, and nuclear power, while also establishing 28 test sites for future industries in 2024.
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Notably, Shanghai boasted 1,782 licensed financial institutions last year.
Shanghai’s total research and development expenditure accounted for around 4.4% of its GDP last year, according to the government work report.
The scale of Shanghai’s three top industries, namely integrated circuits, biomedicine and artificial intelligence, hit 1.8 trillion yuan in 2024.
Shanghai, at the forefront of China’s reform and opening up, witnessed its combined import and export value reach a new record high of 4.27 trillion yuan last year.
Shanghai Port’s Container Throughput
Shanghai Port’s container throughput totaled 51.51 million TEUs (22 equivalent units) last year — ranking first in the world for fifteen consecutive years, the government work report showed.
As a popular foreign investment destination, the metropolis recorded $17.5 billion of foreign capital in actual use last year.
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It was home to 1,016 regional headquarters of multinational corporations and 591 foreign-funded R&D centers last year, including 60 and 30, respectively, established in 2024, the government work report revealed.
