Changsha, the present-day capital city of Hunan Province, has a history dating back over 3,000 years to the Chu State and Han Dynasty. Changsha is also the political, economic and cultural center of Hunan, playing a major role in opening up the inland area to the rest of the world. An attractive city, dubbed a "National Forest City" by the China Forestry Bureau in 2006 and best known for being close to the birthplace of Mao Zedong (at nearby Shaoshan); Changsha is an important mainland base for the export of agricultural products, with Hunan contributing 13% of China's national rice production and also being rich in tobacco, fruit and timber.

In 2006, Changsha's GDP reached 179.07 billion RMB, an increase of 14.8% over the previous year and ranking 28th among Chinese cities. The city's primary industries had stable growth at 5.7% with a total industrial added value output of 12.33 billion RMB; the secondary industries experienced a more robust increase of 15.9% with an industrial value-added output of 77.47 billion RMB; and the tertiary sector led the way with an increase of 19.4% and an industrial value-added output of 58.4 billion RMB.

The city's GDP per capita was 27,853 RMB and its total economic output accounted for 23.9% of Hunan's total. At the end of 2006, there were 3.63 million people enjoying full employment, including 1.29 million in the urban areas. Investment in fixed assets reached 108.98 billion RMB, including 97.28 billion RMB utilized in the urban areas.



Economic Contribution Ratios by Sector
In 2006, the economic contribution ratio of Changsha's primary industries, including agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and the fisheries, represented 6.9% of GDP; the economic contribution ratio of the secondary and value-added industries and construction represented 43.3%; while the economic contribution ratio of the tertiary sector represented 49.8%.

Composition of GDP (%)

Foreign Trade Overview
In 2006, Changsha's total import and export volume was US$2.93 million, including US$1.93 billion in exports and US$1 billion in import volume. Major exports were electromechanical products and new-high tech products, accounting for 28.7% and 23.0% of total export volume. The EU, Japan and the US are the three largest trading partners of Changsha. Hong Kong, the EU and the US are the three largest export markets and the EU, Japan and Australia are the three largest sources of imports.

Foreign Trade and Cultural Ties
The 2007 International Tea Conference and Expo, the First Hunan Entrepreneurs Convention, the third Hunan-Taiwan Trade and Economic Exchange and Cooperation Summit, The Second Central China Expo, the Xiamen Exchange Fair, the Hunan Hi-Tech Fair and the ASEAN Expo were held in Changsha to promote foreign trade and cultural exchanges.

The city has friendly exchanges with countries and regions on all five continents, and has twinned with 10 foreign cities to date. The city has also signed friendly exchange and economic cooperation agreements with 7 other foreign cities. 

Changsha's Sister Cities