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Nanjing’s strategic position along the Yangtze River was evident when Sun Quan, the Emperor of Eastern Wu, chose Jianye (present-day Nanjing) as his new capital in 229 AD. This is the land of fish and rice. Over the next few hundred years, the surrounding area gradually became the economic center of China. Nanjing became the defender of Chinese civilization against the invaders from the north and the disseminator of Chinese culture. Because of the arrival of outstanding scholars, Nanjing has become a center of cultural integration.
Based on good transportation and market access conditions, a strong foundation for innovative industries, first-class university resources, and a good business and living environment, the advantages that have historically made Nanjing a powerful metropolis have continued to this day. It is worth noting that Nanjing has always been one of China’s places of innovation and investment and business.
The main person in charge of Nanjing Investment Promotion Bureau communicated with the contributors of the United Kingdom Economist Group
01 An economic powerhouse
Historically, the Yangtze River Delta, where Nanjing is located, known as Jiangnan, is one of the world’s largest manufacturing centers and the richest region among the Chinese, accounting for about a quarter of the country’s GDP in its own right. Wang Dongning said: “The Nanjing metropolitan area has a population of 36 million and has a huge market. We have a very good supply chain, both upstream and downstream, almost within an hour’s drive. ”
BSH Home Appliances Greater China Headquarters
The proximity to suppliers and markets is undoubtedly the reason why BSH chose Nanjing as its headquarters and R&D center in Greater China. Song Rinbing, Chief Financial Officer of BSH Greater China, said that over the past 20 years, BSH has achieved double-digit annual revenue growth in the Chinese market. This year, the Chinese market is expected to become its largest single country market in the world.
Well-developed transportation has always been Nanjing’s advantage. In the Ming Dynasty in the 15th century, Zheng He set out from Nanjing and went to the West. As a pioneer of globalization, Zheng He’s fleet sailed as far as Africa and the Red Sea. Today, the city has one of the largest inland ports in the world, and in addition to the international airport, it is one of China’s five major road and rail hubs, which is even more critical today.
“We are an international company, and we must make it easy for all our partners, including Chinese and foreigners, to contact us,” Song said, “Without Nanjing, I don’t think BSH would be where it is today.”
02 Talent is surging
Of course, manufacturing companies need engineers, and Nanjing happens to have many of them. Southeast University is one of the best engineering universities in China, and BSH has a joint R&D center with Southeast University. According to Song, the center’s 33 research projects include areas such as artificial intelligence, materials, and energy. Nanjing University is another top university in the city, ranking seventh in China in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023.
Nanjing University is located in the heart of Nanjing
There are 51 institutions of higher learning in Nanjing, with a student population of nearly 1 million. Nanjing also has 94 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, ranking third in the country in terms of the number of “double first-class” universities.
Among the research centers in Nanjing, the Nanjing Turing Institute of Artificial Intelligence is a rising star. It was founded five years ago by Turing Award winner Chi-Chi Yao and focuses on the industrial application and commercialization of artificial intelligence. “At Tsinghua University, researchers choose research topics by reading academic papers. Here, our research starts from (solving) salient industrial problems. Li Qiang, CEO of the Institute, said.
So far, the institute has incubated and invested in 43 artificial intelligence start-ups, with a valuation of nearly 9 billion yuan. “Nanjing has good policies, top universities and a mature industrial chain, and we base our product development on a strong manufacturing base.” Li Qiang said.
03 The City of Fraternity
When Nanjingers describe their city’s culture, a word that is often used is “tolerance”, which can be translated as fraternity, openness, and tolerance. In fact, tourists often say the same.
“Welcoming immigrants and their ideas is a long-standing tradition,” said Xue Bing, a writer and historian of Nanjing. “There is a high percentage of local university graduates staying, which is what a city with so many highly qualified people would expect, and we want to absorb the advanced elements of other cultures.”
Tianjia Energy Base
This consensus is evident among Nanjing government officials, and Jiang Li, chairman of Tianjia Environmental Technology, also believes that Nanjing is somewhat like London or San Francisco in international cities in terms of business culture. TICA provides air filtration and conditioning systems for semiconductor manufacturers, hospitals and pharmaceutical factories. Jiang Li’s company was originally established in Hainan and eventually chose Nanjing as its headquarters.
“The government here really understands business thinking.” Jiang Li said that when he was interviewed, he was in Zurich, and although it was the Spring Festival holiday, he had been away from his family to look for new business opportunities. Coincidentally, Li Qiang of the Turing Research Institute was also impressed by the completion of the contract by the Nanjing government and enterprises, and he thought that the spirit of the contract here was good. According to a 2021 survey by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Nanjing’s SME rule of law environment ranks first among Chinese cities.
Whether it is business-friendly, expatriate-friendly, medical or educational, Nanjing leads other cities in the 2022 ranking of China’s emerging cities released by the Economist Intelligence Unit. She also scored high on the Well-Being Survey. Another release from Outlook Oriental Weekly and Outlook Think Tank named Nanjing one of the happiest cities in China.
“The industry follows the talents, and the talents follow the city. So to be a first-class industry and introduce first-class investment, we must be a first-class city,” said Wang Dongning, who has just organized the Nanjing ESG Investment Forum. Recently, the Nanjing government has held promotion conferences in Hong Kong, Germany, France and Korea to strive for new investment opportunities.
