Beijing    
As China’s capital city, Beijing is the country’s centre of politics, culture, education and diplomacy. Beijing is among the most developed cities in China with tertiary industry accounting for 73.2% of its GDP. Finance is one of the most important industries: by the end of 2007, there were 751 financial organizations in Beijing that generated 128.6 billion Renminbi (RMB) in revenue. It is also accounts for 13.8% of Beijing’s GDP, the highest percentage of that of all Chinese cities. Beijing is increasingly becoming known for its innovative entrepreneurs and high-growth start-ups. This culture is backed by a large community of both Chinese and foreign venture capital firms.

Shanghai
With a population of over 20 million, Shanghai is the centre of Chinese finance, trade and communications. Shanghai is a bustling hub of international commerce and a major destination for foreign corporate headquarters, fuelling demand for a highly educated and modernized workforce. Container traffic and cargo moving through the port—560 million tons in 2007—has made Shanghai the second-busiest port in the world, behind Singapore and ahead of Hong Kong. The city has recorded double-digit growth annually since 1992. In 2008, Shanghai’s GDP posted a 9.7% growth to 1.37 trillion Yuan.

Industrial zones in Shanghai include the Shanghai Hongqiao Economic and Technological Development Zone, Jinqiao Export Economic Processing Zone, Minhang Economic and Technological Development Zone, and Shanghai Caohejing High and New Technological Development Zone.

Shenzhen
Shenzhen is located in southern China’s Guangdong province. Owing to the economic liberalization policies of the late 20th century, the area became China’s first—and arguably one of the most successful—Special Economic Zones.

Shenzhen’s modern cityscape and vibrant economy is thanks to more than US $30 billion in investment by foreign nationals since the 1970s. It is now one of the fastest-growing cities in the world. Shenzhen is home to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange as well as the headquarters of numerous high-tech companies. Shenzhen is also the second busiest port in mainland China after Shanghai.

Guangzhou
China’s third-largest city, Guangzhou is a key trading hub on the Pearl River, an important navigation channel to the South China Sea. Guangzhou is the manufacturing core of the Pearl River Delta, one of mainland China’s leading commercial and industrial regions.
The Guangzhou Free Trade Zone, founded in 1992, is home to international trade, logistics, the processing industry and computer software. Other major industries include automobile assembly, biotech and heavy industry.

Hong Kong
A special administrative region under the “one country, two systems” policy, Hong Kong is largely self-governing, with its own currency, legal and political systems, and a high degree of autonomy. Hong Kong is one of the world’s leading financial capitals, a major business and cultural hub, and maintains a highly developed capitalist economy.

Hong Kong is the world’s 11th-largest trading entity with the total value of imports and exports exceeding its gross domestic product. Much of Hong Kong’s exports consist of re-exports—products made in mainland China and distributed via Hong Kong. Even before the 1997 handover, Hong Kong had established extensive trade and investment ties with mainland China, and its autonomous status now enables it to serve as a point of entry for investment flowing into the mainland. Hong Kong’s largest export markets are mainland China, the United States and Japan.