Geographical Advantages
Hangzhou is located on the southern rim of the Yangtze River Delta, at the confluence of the western end of Hangzhou Bay, the lower reaches of the Qiantang River, and the southern terminal of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. As the second largest city in the East China Economic Circle (ECEC), next to Shanghai, Hangzhou enjoys a number of advantages including a strong and vibrant economy, a superior geographical location and easy accessibility. Hangzhou is an excellent place in which to invest and do business.

Ecological Environment
The construction of an ecologically advanced city was furthered with the development of the project called "Blue Sky, Clear Water, Green and Peaceful" which strengthened urban environmental infrastructure. In 2006, investment in environmental protection reached 6.5 billion RMB, equal to 1.9 percent of Hangzhou's GDP. The number of days of fine air quality in the urban areas reached 299, or almost 82% of the entire year. An area of 468 hectares of green belt was planted in the urban areas. By the end of the year, green-space in urban gardens and parks per capita as well as public-space per capita in the urban areas reached 45.16 square meters and 11.75 square meters respectively.

Banking and Insurance
There are more than 20 banks, with hundreds of branches and over 70 insurance companies with over 150 insurance agencies in Hangzhou. Savings deposits, both in RMB and foreign currencies, in Hangzhou amount to 785.6 billion RMB, an increase of 116 billion RMB over the previous year, with outstanding loans at 660.4 billion RMB, an increase of 110.7 billion RMB over the previous year. Insurance premiums collected by insurance companies in the city rose to 8.4 billion RMB, up by 15.8 percent.

Urban Improvement Projects
Over 1,050 streets and lanes were reconstructed or repaved. With a total length of 460 kilometers, the urban renewal project resulted in the creation of 10,408 new parking places and 76 new public parking lots, significantly reducing traffic congestion. One and half million residents and workers saw direct benefit through the improvement to their living and working environments as a result. Historically significant streets and lanes were refurbished in their traditional styles, thus preserving the city's cultural heritage. These include Jesus Lane, which introduces the life of John Leighton Stuart, the Jinhua Road reflecting the history of the Zhejiang Flax Textile Factory and Citang Lane located by the Yuqian Temple.

Government Efficiency
The Hangzhou municipal government efficiency rating is relative high compared to other cities of the same level in China. According to the World Bank's report on the investment environment for 120 Chinese Cities, Hangzhou's government efficiency ranked 12th in the country.

In order to improve government efficiency, the Hangzhou municipal government adopted a program of Digital City Management. Highly-praised by experts, the first-phase of Hangzhou's digital city management program was completed successfully and gained wide acceptance from the National Construction Ministry. The first-phase of the digital city management program covered 192 square kilometers, involving over 2 million connections to its digital infrastructure. So far in the urban areas, there are 172 networked management units interconnected with 362 communities and over 880 network terminals. City managers and administrative departments share information, such as video monitoring for public security, online supervision of municipal bridges, monitoring of water distribution systems and urban flood control systems. Supervision of sanitation vehicles can also now be done in real time and a unified trouble-spotting, trouble-shooting and emergency response system involving multiple jurisdictional layers to enhance coordination, is in place.

According to a recent report by the World Bank, Hangzhou has the best investment environment in China based on a range of factors including political stability, consistent tax policies, foreign trade and investment diversity and the quality of infrastructure and financial services. At the 4th China Investment Climate Forum held in Hangzhou in November of 2006, the World Bank released a report entitled "Governance, Investment Climate, and Harmonious Society: Competitiveness Enhancement for 120 Cities in China," ranking Hangzhou among the "golden cities" for investment in China. According to the Chinese Cities Comprehensive Competitiveness Report issued by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in 2007, Hangzhou currently ranks 6th on the basis of infrastructure.