Jon,
A good friend of my just secured a deal for a new repair facility for his company (he's the MD of Asia/Pac) in Hangzhou China. Hangzhou is just outside of Shanghai and is a great place. I've been there a few times and hopefully will back again soon. I need to tour their construction site (I get invited to stuff like that, 'cause I'm a fun guy!)
Why should you care about the repair facility? He's building it for just over 22 million USD (compared to the cost of about 80 million USD had he chosen the USA), and he will employ 65-75 workers there. What will he repair there? Thrust reversers, valves, and actuation devices for the F-18 fighter and the Joint Strike Fighter. Just thought you'd like to know that. His workers will earn about $18000 USD per year for the top level engineers and around $6000 USD per year for repairman positions. The cute 105 pound secretaries with D-cup breasts and smile to die for will earn about $3000 per year.
Oh, here's the 2004 figures for the city.....gee, look at who buys more off of this place than any other country..........and look who their major investor is.......
Hangzhou 2004
Population: 6.43 million
Per capita GDP: $3,930
Average per capita urban disposable income: $1,558 (+9.5%)
Average per capita rural net income: $693 (+9.5%)
Average per capita urban spending: $1,202 (+8%)
Average per capita rural spending: $553 (+15.7%)
Mobile phone use: 61.4% of city population
Hangzhou Accounts for
0.50% of China's total population
1.48% of China's total GDP
1.74% of China's total contracted FDI
2.50% of China's exports
1.76% of China's imports
13.74% of Zhejiang's total population
22.73% of Zhejiang's total GDP
16.60% of Zhejiang's total contracted FDI
26.40% of Zhejiang's exports
36.77% of Zhejiang's imports
Economy
GDP: $25.26 billion (+15%)
Fixed-asset investment: $12.15 billion (+30.7%)
Value-added industrial output: $11.29 billion (+19.9%)
Retail sales: $7.09 billion (+12.4%)
Consumer price index: -0.5%
Foreign Direct Investment
Number of contracts: 869 (+48%)
Amount contracted: $2 billion (+107%)
Amount utilized: $1.01 billion (+93.3%)
Top five investors (amount contracted)
Hong Kong $812.3 million
British Virgin Islands $189.2 million
UNITED STATES $181.9 MILLION
Japan $124.2 million
Taiwan $122.7 million
Hangzhou Foreign Trade
Total trade: $18.23 billion (+39.2%)
Exports: $10.95 billion (+29.2%)
Imports: $7.28 billion (+57.5%)
Top trade partners:
UNITED STATES
Japan
European Union
Hong Kong
Source: Hangzhou Statistics Bureau
Note: All growth rates are compared to the same period in 2003 except where indicated.