Thriving metropolis seeks to drive regional growth by 2022 and evolve into a national competitive hub
Chengdu plans to develop its new economy, which can improve its competitiveness globally and drive regional growth by 2022, according to a conference held in early November.
It also aims to build a pioneering city that has many resources, incubators and innovative clusters for the new economy.
The overall process of transitioning from heavy industry to a new-technology-based economy was described in the United States by Time magazine in a 1983 cover article called "The New Economy." By 1996 the leading magazine Businessweek was commonly using the term the "new economy".
Since then it has become popularized worldwide and the idea was incorporated in China in a government report by the State Council last year.
Local officials said Chengdu has an ideal environment for developing new economy. It has 56 higher-learning institutes, 30-plus national-level research institutions and nearly 5 million skilled laborers, as well as a large consumer's market and a creative and inclusive local culture.
Officials say that the new economy is bourgeoning in Chengdu with great vitality.
Many leading companies have been attracted to the city to find business opportunities, and more talented people have come for a bright future there.
Tech giant Tencent, for example, recently held its 2017 world partner conference in Chengdu. Smartisan Digital moved its headquarters to the city, while 58.com invested 3 billion yuan ($452 million) to build a new economy industrial park there.
According to the 2016-17 Chinese cities competitiveness report released by CCID Consulting, Chengdu ranked first among all the cities in central and western China.
New driving force
Zhou Cheng, director of the policy research office of Chengdu's new economy committee said the new economy was set to become a driving force.
Zhou said at the conference that Chengdu will take the new economy as an important strategy for future growth. It could also help to optimize the city's economic structure and improve competitiveness, he added.
The conference proposed the idea to develop a new economy that was driven by new technology and supported by new industries and new entities.
A total of 4.3 percent of total government expenditure will be poured into Chengdu's research and development, putting the city's R&D strength at the forefront of the nation, Zhou said.
The city plans to foster about 100,000 new-economy-related companies, including seven so-called unicorns - startups valued at over $1 billion - and more than 280,000 technical entrepreneurs by 2022. The city also plans to draw more shared economy companies with broader application of big data.
Six industrial clusters - in biomedicine, automobile equipment, intelligent manufacturing, locomotive production, energy conservation and environmental protection, and cultural creativity, are to be formed in 2022, each with an annual output value of 100 billion yuan, Zhou said.
He noted that the electronic information industry will be the most important of all, with an annual output value topping 1 trillion yuan in 2022.
He noted that Chengdu will develop more cutting-edge industries - including internet financing, online education, precision medicine and intellectual property business - as engines to develop the new economy.
E-commerce is expected to be used as a driving force for all industries, and online transaction volumes are expected to reach 2.2 trillion yuan by 2022.
He said Chengdu will adopt new modes to promote sharing services and draw more shared economy companies to establish branches. By 2022, the application of big data will be popularized and the scale of the shared economy will be enlarged.
"Chengdu will focus on intelligent, green, creative and shared economy to form a new economy system with global competitiveness," Zhou said.
"We will improve our capability to serve the real economy through new technology and financial service; build a smart city; promote technical innovation and entrepreneurship; drive market demand; attract human resources and capital; boost low-carbon growth and establish modern supply chains."
Chengdu will combine electronic information with its seven major industries, including intelligent manufacturing, digital entertainment, cultural creativity, big health and new finance, Zhou said.
Chengdu's strength
Zhou Tao, executive president of Chengdu New Economy Development Institute and professor of the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, said the city had great potential to develop its new economy.
It has many universities that have programs serving the new economy, such as electronic information, communication technology and computer science in the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, biomedicine in Sichuan University and finance and applied economics in the Southwestern University of Finance and Economics.
In addition, it has varied industrial bases for developing electronic information, healthcare, modern finance and advanced manufacturing.
Chengdu's population was the fourth biggest among China's cities, which suggests a broad market space, he added.
Li Qiangqiang, vice-president of Aplus Labs, an incubator serving startups, said he was optimistic about the future of Chengdu because of its plan to develop a new economy.
"There are many institutes of higher-learning that are training professionals for the emerging industries," he said.
"Besides, many IT giants, including Intel, Foxconn, Lenovo and Dell, have operations here, providing more opportunities for expanding an IT industrial chain in the city."
Li said that all added to the potential to develop high-tech and intelligent manufacturing industries.
Idealsee, a VR product company, is one of the successful startups in Chengdu.
It has moved its production plant from Shenzhen to Chengdu. This month, a new version of its virtual reality device, with more than 300 patents, went online in the city.
Li Xinyu, vice-president of Idealsee, said since 2012, the company has developed from a small firm of several employees into a company with about 200 staff members.
A number of high-tech startups are bourgeoning in Chengdu with more professionals introduced in the city, covering such fields as electronic information, biomedicine, financial business and creative culture.
The output value of the new economy in Chengdu was expected to top 500 billion yuan by 2022, according to the city's plan.