Dongguan investment soars with sustained bullish momentum

[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The 2023 Dongguan Global Investment Promotion Conference is set to take place from December 6 to 7. As of November 28, over 770 domestic and international companies have confirmed their participation, making it the largest and most internationally attended global investment promotion conference in Dongguan in the past five years.

During a press conference on November 29, Chen Shunjiao, director of the Dongguan Investment Promotion Bureau, introduced that Dongguan has maintained a steady and progressive trend in overall investment attraction from January to November this year, with industrial project agreements surpassing 200 billion yuan (about $28 billion), marking an 18.1 percent increase year-on-year.

In shedding light on this year's investment landscape, Chen emphasized three key aspects.

Firstly, the city has seen sustained optimization of its industrial structure. Agreed investments in manufacturing projects exceeded 160 billion yuan, showing a 15.9 percent year-on-year growth. Investments in emerging and pillar industries surpassed 100 billion yuan, up 9.9 percent year-on-year. Notably, investments in new materials, semiconductors, and integrated circuits experienced significant growth, with year-on-year increases of 48.9 percent and 28.9 percent, respectively.

Secondly, there was a surge in the number of major invested projects, with 396 projects attracting investments exceeding 100 million yuan, 105 projects exceeding 500 million yuan, and 47 projects exceeding one billion yuan. Notably, there has been a breakthrough in securing major industrial projects with investments in the tens of billions.

Thirdly, Dongguan's investment projects have demonstrated swift progress in their implementation. One hundred and eleven industrial projects with investments exceeding 100 million yuan completed land transactions, 16 projects commenced construction following successful competitive bids, and 35 projects signed and landed in the same year.

Noteworthy developments include the opening of Guangdong's first Banyan Tree Hotel on track for January next year, and Dongguan's inaugural Sam's Club due to complete its main structure by the end of December. Several pioneering projects, such as Ganfeng Lithium Group’s lithium battery & energy storage headquarters and Vivo's smart terminal headquarters, are rapidly advancing in construction, contributing to Dongguan's high-quality development.

Subsequently, Chen delved into four pivotal measures implemented by Dongguan to enhance investment promotion.

In 2023, Dongguan has prioritized efficient investment promotion by optimizing mechanisms and adopting a strategy of "large-scale investment promotion." A pivotal meeting at the beginning of the year, led by the municipal government, emphasized the essential connection between industry management, industrial development, and investment promotion. Investment promotion has become a recurring topic of the municipal Party committee and the municipal government executive meeting, fostering an atmosphere of intense competition and learning.

Efforts were concentrated on seeking projects, with a particular emphasis on attracting leading enterprises. Municipal leaders made more than 30 visits to Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou, Hong Kong, Japan, and other places, connecting with a group of industry-leading enterprises. Focusing on key industrial chains such as intelligent robots, new energy vehicles, semiconductors, and integrated circuits, a new version of the industry chain investment map was compiled. Dongguan also organized a large-scale visit to headquarter enterprises, with representatives visiting more than 50 regions at home and abroad, connecting with over 1,500 enterprises.

To facilitate project implementation, a comprehensive chain and end-to-end service system have been instituted. The city has released a comprehensive plan for the full-service spectrum of industrial project implementation, creating a "project pool" to facilitate the execution of over a hundred projects with investments surpassing 100 million yuan. This accomplishment was realized under the guidance of municipal and town leaders assigned to ensure comprehensive coverage. They consistently collaborated with the designated projects, expediting their swift implementation. Additionally, guidelines for project agency services were introduced, delivering extensive and free agency services for key enterprises.

The "Invest in Dongguan" global promotion campaign leveraged national and provincial platforms. The global investment promotion network layout has been optimized, initiating investment promotion work at trade and economic liaison offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. High-profile activities were held globally, enhancing the "Invest in Dongguan" brand through more than 100 domestic and international events.

"We see this global investment promotion conference as an opportunity to vigorously attract top-tier projects, speed up the growth of industries, establish new pillar industries, and continuously bring about positive changes in Dongguan's investment promotion efforts. This, in turn, contributes significantly to the city's high-quality development," said Chen.