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China
Information
Haikou City |
外文名称: Haikou
City (Hainan)
Geographic
Outline
Situated on
the northern tip of the Hainan Island, the city of Haikou faces the
continent across the 18-kilometer-wide Qiongzhou Straits.
Haikou has a total area of 237 square
kilometers, of which 40 square kilometers are urban. It has
under its jurisdiction three districts of Xiuying, Zhendong and
Xinhua. It has a permanent residential population of 580,000
and a migrant population of 150,000.
Resources
Haikou is rich in
natural and human resources. It has long beaches, seaside
swimming grounds, excellent sampan racing grounds and well-preserved
volcanic remains.
Historical
and cultural sites in the area include the Wugong shrine, the Hai Rui
Tomb, the Qiongtai Academy and the Xiuying Battery. It also
has marine forest of mangroves and abundant hot spring water.
Surrounded by sea on three sides, Haikou
is a city with uncontaminated ecological environment. It is also noted
as "a coconut city" or "a pearl on the treasure island" for its
graceful coconut palms and fascinating sea scenery.
Haikou also abounds in natural
resources. It is major producer of natural rubber, crystal, quartz,
sapphire and ilmenite in China. On its outskirts, there are deposits of
freshwater sands, volcanic stones, granite and coral. The South China
Sea is a rich fishing ground. Convenient transportation links
the city to the sites of all these rich resources, laying a foundation
for industrial development.
History
Haikou is an ancient
city. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Haikou was a port of the
prefectural city of Qiongzhou and became a communications hub between
the Hainan Island and the mainland. The place was called
Haikoupu during the early years of the Song Dynasty (906-1279), and
Haikoudu during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It became a trade port,
the south gate to China and a major link between China and the outside
world.
It was called
Haikou town during the early years of the Republic of China (1912-1949)
and became a city in 1926. On June 1, 1950, the Haikou City
Government was established. It became the provincial capital
when Hainan province was established in 1988.
Economic
Achievements
The past
eight years since Hainan became a province have been the most brilliant
period in Haikou's development history. In 1992, Haikou
became one of China's 50 strongest cities in terms of overall economic
strength and one of China's 40 best cities in terms of investment
environment. It has also been one of China's outstanding
cities in terms of environmental harnessing, one of China's best
cities, one of China's cleanest cities and one of China's model cities
in "double support" (mutual support between the army and civilians).
During the 1988-1995 period, its gross
domestic product grew at an annual rate of 23%, its retail sales, at an
annual rate of 31.8%, fiscal revenue, at an annual rate of 45.1%,
foreign trade, at an annual rate of 26.1%, and capital investment, at
an annual rate of 40.2%. All principal indicators of economic and
social development maintained a fast-growing momentum.
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Industry
Haikou'
industrial sector consists of rubber products, chemical fiber textiles,
food and beverage, machinery, chemicals, building materials, medicine,
plastics, tannery and the light industry.
Haikou has established a group of
backbone enterprises such as those producing the "Coconut" brand
beverages, the "Mazda" brand cars, the "Mulan" brand motorcycles, color
television sets, polyamide fiber and polyester fiber. In all,
its 300 key industrial enterprises are turning out about 450 varieties
of products that are selling well not only in various parts of China
but also in more than 50 countries in Southeast Asia, Europe and
America.
Agriculture
Agricultural
development is modeling the suburban pattern of cities. Haikou has been
adjusting the structure of agricultural production, expanding the
acreage of cash crops, pursuing the strategy of basing agricultural
prosperity on scientific advance and building the production centers of
vegetables and other non-staple food. As a result, there has been a
substantial increase in the output of main crops and cash crops, which
are more than enough to meet the needs of urban residents for meat,
poultry, eggs and aquatic products.
Exports
Attracting domestic
resources and foreign capital has yielded tangible fruit in developing
an export-oriented economy. In the past eight years, Haikou
has launched 4,500 foreign-funded projects and set up 5,400
foreign-funded enterprises, with a total actual investment of 3.076
billion U.S. dollars. In the meantime, other province-level
areas in China have established 1,130 offices in Haikou and invested in
5,800 projects, with a total investment of 22.5 billion yuan.
In 1995, Haikou's foreign trade totaled 1.259 billion U.S. dollars.
Telecommunications
and Transport
Haikou
has also worked hard to improve investment environment. Over the past
eight years, investment in urban infrastructure reached 12.6 billion
yuan. Today, Haikou ranks among China's advanced cities in
posts and telecommunications. Telephone availability has increased from
1.9% to 42.5%. Power generating capacity rose from t350,000
kw in 1987 to 1 million kw. Urban transportation is
convenient, with three main highways radiating from Haikou in the east,
central and west to the entire island.
Haikou has also built or expanded 96 major urban roads, large urban
interchanges and 19 overpasses. The newly built Qingling Road, the
expanded Western Haiyu Road, the Industrial Road and the Shugang Road
have become the main frame of an urban road network.
The Haikou Airport has opened more than 40 air
routes and can accommodate large passenger airliners. With
300 regular flights a week, Haikou has become one of China's 10 largest
airports. The port now can handle 11.22 million tons of cargo
a year, as compared only 3.32 million tons eight years ago when the
province was established. The port has 4 wharves for
10,000-dwt ships, 2 wharves for 5000-dwt ships and 24 wharves for ships
below 3,000 dwt.
Direct freight shipping
service links the city to all major Chinese ports, while passenger
shipping can reach Guangzhou, Shantou, Beihai, Zhanjiang, Hong Kong and
Singapore. Trees and grass cover 37.7% of the urban area, or
8.3 square meters per person. The investment environment is
improving steadily.
Prospective
Haikou has 12
development zones, with the high-tech industry park and the farming
experiment development zone progressing smoothly. The
1.53-square-kilometer bonded zone, which began operating in April 1993,
incorporates industry, finance, transit trade and storage. So
far, 193 enterprises have been established in the bonded area, with a
total investment of 2.3 billion yuan.
Haikou has entered a historical period
of fast growth and is considered a favorite place for both Chinese and
foreign investors.
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