Shipbuilding and Water Transportation
Shipbuilding and water transportation is a distinctive industry with long history for this county. In recent years, this industry has made great progress owing to the guideline of “guiding with planning, stimulating with interests, focusing on market and driving with policy” as well as the development route of “collectivizing the industry, corporatizing the operation and factorizing shipbuilding”, which took good grasp of the development opportunity brought about by national policy that gave priority to the development and opening up of coastal area and those along major rivers. Along with rapid development of shipbuilding bases outside of the county, such as Nanjing and Wuhu, the shipping industrial base and shipping related industry are both making stable progress. Jiangsu Yichun Shipping Accessories Manufacturing Co., Ltd and Nanjing Fenggang Machinery Co., Ltd have settled themselves in Gaochun Development Zone for operation in succession. After the effective adjustment of industrial structure, water transportation companies are also mushrooming, forming a new transportation pattern connecting inland rivers, Yangtze River, costal areas and oceans, and also realizing a sound combination of shipbuilding industry and water transportation. At present, there are 87 qualified water transportation companies, among which, 23 are ocean shipping companies, 22 are for transportation of general goods on Yangtze River, and 42 are agents for shipping and cargo transportation. From January to July this year, operating revenues of water transportation reached RMB1.517 billion, and taxation amounted RMB1,305.80, respectively increased by 21.85% and 59.56% than the same period of last year.
Building Industry
Building industry is a traditional and pillar industry for Gaochun. In recent years, under the correct leadership of Prefectural CCP Committee and Prefectural Government, building industry has made more remarkable achievements by seizing opportunities and taking advantages of favorable situations. With effective structural adjustment, fruitful market opening up, new progress of company reform, expanding pillar effect and remarkable increase in comprehensive strength, Gaochun has been honored as “home land of architecture in Jiangsu” for three times consecutively. Building industry plays a more and more important role in enriching people and strengthening county economy. It has actually become an important channel for transferring rural labor force and leading them to the road of wealth. Since the beginning of the “10th Five-year Plan”, Gaochun has made tremendous achievements in building industry, with one national outstanding project, two Lu Ban Awards, three ministerial excellent projects, 37 provincial high quality projects and 156 municipal high quality projects. By 2006, there were a total of 110 building companies in the county, 10 of which are of first-grade certificate and 18 are of second-grade certificate. The increase in number of companies with higher grade certificate has laid a solid foundation for the rapid development of the county’s building industry. According to the requirements of the “11th Five-year Plan”, further efforts will be put on the raise of economic aggregate of building industry, speeding up expansion in high-end market, and nurturing competitive enterprises. In a word, we aim at making the building industry of Gaochun bigger and stronger, promoting it to higher levels by making breakthroughs and winning Gaochun the honorable title of a “strong building county”.
Commerce and Trade
Commerce and trade is the third special industry of the county. In recent years, a number of brand stores and chain stores such as Five Star Electrical Appliances, China Resources Suguo, KFC and Suning Electrical Appliances etc. have been opened one after another under the county’s investment-inviting policies, which has brought about huge changes of its commerce and trade economy, generally speaking, operation grade turning from low end to medium and high end, specialized market changing from regional market to national market and business model transforming from traditional to modern. In 2006, the construction of the aquatic product wholesale market, an investment of RMB200 million, was completed, and it became a special group market featuring agricultural products yet integrating agricultural product trade, fruit wholesale, fishing equipments market as well as hypermarket. As a border trade point, the coverage of Gaochun market has also expanded to south part of Anhui province. It has risen as a new highlight of “border trade centers” because it has the largest and mechanized pig slaughterhouse in the county, the new wing of its department store tower becomes the top-class department store in the county, and it also homes many famous chain stores such as Suguo, Suning and KFC. In addition, 260 rural chain stores have been opened with the progress of the program of “connecting thousands of villages and hundreds of towns with market”, forming a new rural distribution network covering all towns and villages in the county.