A bird's eye view of Suzhou New District. [Photo provided to english.snd.gov.cn]
Suzhou New District made steady economic progress in the first quarter of this year, local media outlets reported.
Statistics show that in January and February, the output and added value of SND's above-designated-size enterprises, meaning those with annual operating revenues of roughly $3.1 million or more, reached 47.12 billion yuan ($7.19 billion) and 10.41 billion yuan, respectively, up 73.6 and 62.9 percent from last year. Imports and exports grew 47 percent year-on-year to $6.39 billion and foreign capital in actual use was up 118.1 percent to $538 million.
The results were partly a result of SND's early planning on work resumption after the Spring Festival holiday, as well as its focus on the construction of 223 major industrial projects, which attracted a total of 68 billion yuan in investment.
SND has also been maintaining a strong relationship with Japanese investors. It is now home to 605 Japanese companies with an output value accounting for one fifth of the district's total. It has also established schools, commercial streets, clinics, and service centers to meet Japanese investors' diversified working and living needs.
Innovation is becoming an important engine for high-quality development in SND. The district has already attracted 238 innovative companies, 76 high-tech projects, and 20 national key sci-tech projects. It is also actively creating a friendly environment for innovative companies, helping them better carry out business and solve problems in a diversified way.
