When reviewing economies around the world China’s is one of the most captivating. The Chinese economy is very diversified and up until recently was growing at an astronomical clip. China is made up of numerous provinces and these provinces are incorporated into China’s overall economic numbers. When reviewing China’s provinces, you will realize that the GDP of many of them are greater than if not equal to the gross domestic products of countries such as Mexico and Indonesia. One of the largest provinces within China is Shandong which has a gross domestic product of roughly one trillion dollars.
It is important to understand how and why the Shandong province is so robust. The province of Shandong is situated on the east coast. The general land size of Shandong Province is roughly one hundred and fifty-seven squared kilometers and has a population of roughly ninety-six million people. When comparing the size of Shandong with other land masses you could say that it is four times larger than the Netherlands and the size of its population is slightly larger than Germany. In addition, Shandong is the second largest populous throughout China as well as the second largest consumer market within all of China.
Shandong is well known for its resources and energy along with its geographic location. Shandong has had a major impact on the economic development of China. Agriculture plays a major role in the growth and development of Shandong province. To many Shandong is recognized as what would be deemed as the warehouse for numerous agricultural products such as; grains, oil, cotton, fruits, vegetables as well as aquatic products. In addition, Shandong is also known for producing hemp, wheat, tobacco, peanut, silkworms along with medicinal herbs and products. Also, Shandong is considered China’s energy base which consists of Shengli Oilfield located in Dongying City. The Shengli Oilfield was discovered in nineteen fifty-five and is the second largest oil field within China. There is another major oil field called Zhongyuan which plays a major role in Shandong’s gross domestic product.
Again, natural energy makes up a large chunk of Shandong’s GDP. The crude oil within the providence of Shandong accounts for close to 1/5 of the nation’s crude oil output. The amount of coal produced with Shandong is extensive. There are fifty thousand square kilometers of coalfields. The Yanzhou coalmine ranks as the country’s top 10 coal producers. Along with coal the amount of electricity produced within the province is vast. There is a tremendous amount of electricity produced on a consistent basis within the province as well. Over the next several years, the Shandong provincial government has mapped out plans to expand into other forms of emerging industries including; equipment manufacturing (robotics and agriculture equipment), new energy such as wind power, fishery processing, biomaterial, biopharmaceuticals and medical informatics, information technology (cloud computing) & pharmaceuticals.
Over the last decade foreign investment has grown immensely within Shandong. The three major cities of Weigai, Qingdao and Yantai are all coastal cities. The last several years have shown a push of investment from both Japanese as well as South Korean manufacturers. The cities geographical areas give Shandong a great deal of attractiveness to outside investors. In addition, over the last two decades numerous Dutch companies have invested along with establish offices within Shandong. Presently, there are roughly fifty Dutch companies which have a presence within Shandong. The Dutch companies doing business with Shandong range in sectors from machinery equipment, logistics, shipbuilding, agriculture, fishery as well as petro chemical. Other industries which the Dutch have invested in Shandong are healthcare, waste management and information technology.
Within China Shandong over the last decade has become a major tourist spot. The beaches that line the coast of Shandong are beautiful and stretch for 100’s of miles. In addition, the building skyline is fantastic and mimics a European style. 2014 was a prosperous year for Shandong for tourism. The province attracted close to five hundred and ninety-six million domestic tourists. The revenue associated to this tourism was 571 billion dollars. In addition, international tourism was four hundred and forty-five million visitors generating revenue close to $2.1 billion dollars.
The United States accounted for a large portion of Shandong’s exports followed by Japan and Korea. The categories which make up the most exports of Shandong consist of plastics, vehicles/related parts, garments, machinery, textiles and electronics. In addition, Shandong is also a major importer of goods. The countries which import the greatest number of products are South Korea, Australia, The United States and Brazil. The imports included items such as plastics, fruits, seeds, electrical equipment and machinery.
Agriculture is one of the fastest growth/economic areas of Shandong province. Shandong province presently has one of the largest granary areas in all of China. In addition, the province is the largest vegetable producer in China. The figures for 2011 and total grain output were very impressive. The total grain output exceeded 44.2 million tons and has been growing consistently for nine consecutive years.
In closing, it is important for investors and traders to understand the significant growth that is presently taking place within China and the province of Shandong. In the future the city of Shandong will continue to prosper and develop into an economic trading powerhouse. The investor and trader should continue to track this Chinese province for economic expansion and look for opportunities to invest and trade in its future growth.
Risk warning: Forward Rate Agreements, Options and CFDs (OTC Trading) are leveraged products that carry a substantial risk of loss up to your invested capital and may not be suitable for everyone. Please ensure that you understand fully the risks involved and do not invest money you cannot afford to lose.Our group of companies through its subsidiaries is licensed by the Cyprus Securities & Exchange Commission (Easy Forex Trading Ltd- CySEC, License Number 079/07), which has been passported in the European Union through the MiFID Directive and in Australia by ASIC (Easy Markets Pty Ltd -AFS license No. 246566).
Speak Your Mind