Why Hangzhou

Economy

A consumer pays with Alipay after ordering food at the first self-service restaurant in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. [Photo/Xinhua]

As one of the most economically vibrant cities in China, Hangzhou recorded a sustained economic growth last year, with the regional GDP reaching 1.35 trillion yuan ($201.09 billion), up 7 percent compared with the previous year. The city's fiscal revenue also saw a robust rise of 14.5 percent year on year to 345.5 billion yuan.

Home to many of China's leading innovative hi-tech enterprises such as Alibaba and Hikvision, the added value of its digital economy, a featured sector in the city's economic profile, rose by 15 percent year-on-year, accounting for 24.8 percent of the city's GDP, followed by e-commerce, software and information service, and digital content industries.

The total import and export volume reached 524.5 billion yuan last year, a year-on-year increase of 3.1 percent. The export to countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative was 107.2 billion yuan, representing 31.4 percent of total exports.

In 2018, Hangzhou received a total of 184 million visitors from home and abroad, generating tourism revenue of 358.9 billion yuan.