Wednesday, July 20, 2011

ShanghaiGeography



Geography

Main article: Geography of Shanghai
The urban area of Shanghai can be seen in this natural-colour satellite image (Landsat-7 2005-08-15).
The Yangtze River Delta is shown in green in this map of Shanghai (on the east at centre) alongisde the neighbouring provinces of Jiangsu (to the north and west) and Zhejiang (to the north and east). Parts of Jiangsu and Zhejiang which are outside the Yangtze River Delta are shown in yellow. Provincial boundaries are shown in purple, sub-provincial boundaries in grey.
Shanghai sits on the Yangtze River Delta on China's eastern coast, and is roughly equidistant from Beijing and Hong Kong. The municipality as a whole consists of a peninsula between theYangtze and Hangzhou Bay, mainland China's second-largest island Chongming, and a number of smaller islands. It is bordered on the north and west by Jiangsu Province, on the south byZhejiang Province, and on the east by the East China Sea. The city proper is bisected by theHuangpu River, a tributary of the Yangtze. The historic centre of the city, the Puxi area, is located on the western side of the Huangpu, while the newly developed Pudong, containing the central financial district Lujiazui, was developed on the eastern bank.
The vast majority of Shanghai's 6,218 km2(2,401 sq mi) land area is flat, apart from a few hills in the southwest corner, with an average elevation of 4 m (13 ft).[27] The city's location on the flat alluvial plain has meant that new skyscrapers must be built with deep concrete piles to stop them from sinking into the soft ground. The highest point is at the peak of Dajinshan Island at 103 m (338 ft).[28] The city has many rivers, canals, streams and lakes and is known for its rich water resources as part of the Taihu drainage area.

[edit]Climate

Shanghai has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) and experiences four distinct seasons. Winters are chilly and damp, and cold northwesterly winds from Siberia can cause nighttime temperatures to drop below freezing, although most years there are only one or two days of snowfall. Summers are hot and humid, with an average of 8.7 days exceeding 35 °C (95 °F) annually; occasional downpours or freak thunderstorms can be expected. The city is also susceptible to typhoons in summer and the beginning of autumn, none of which in recent years has caused considerable damage.[29] The most pleasant seasons are Spring, although changeable and often rainy, and Autumn, which is generally sunny and dry. The city averages 4.2 °C (39.6 °F) in January and 27.9 °C (82.2 °F) in July, for an annual mean of 16.1 °C (61.0 °F). Shanghai experiences on average 1,878 hours of sunshine per year, with the hottest temperature ever recorded at 40.2 °C (104 °F), and the lowest at −12.1 °C (10 °F).[30] The average frost-free period is 276 days.[27]

]

]Politics

Main article: Politics of Shanghai
The politics of Shanghai is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in China. The Mayor of Shanghai is the highest-ranking official in the People's Government of Shanghai.

[edit]Administrative divisions

Main article: List of administrative divisions of Shanghai
Shanghai is administratively equal to a province and is divided into 17 county-level divisions: 16 districts and one county. Even though every district has its own urban core, the real city centre is between Bund to the east, Nanjing Rd to the north, Old City Temple and Huaihai Road to the south. Prominent central business areas include Lujiazui on the east bank of the Huangpu River, and The Bund andHongqiao areas in the west bank of the Huangpu River. The city hall and major administration units are located in Huangpu District, which also serve as a commercial area, including the famous Nanjing Road. Other major commercial areas include Xintiandi and the classy Huaihai Road (previously Avenue Joffre) in Luwan district and Xujiahui (which used to be translated into English as Zikawei, reflecting the Shanghainese pronunciation) in Xuhui District. Many universities in Shanghai are located in residential areas of Yangpu District and Putuo District.
The 17 districts and 1 county that make up the Municipality of Shanghai
Nine of the districts govern Puxi (literally Huangpu River west), or the older part of urban Shanghai on the west bank of the Huangpu River. These nine districts are collectively referred to as Shanghai Proper (上海市区) or the core city (市中心):
Pudong (literally Huangpu River east), or the newer part of urban and suburban Shanghai on the east bank of the Huangpu River, is governed by:
  • Pudong New District (浦东新区 Pǔdōng Xīn Qū) – Chuansha County until 1992, merged with Nanhui District in 2009
Seven of the districts govern suburbs, satellite towns, and rural areas further away from the urban core:
Chongming Island, an island at the mouth of the Yangtze, is governed by:
As of 2009, these county-level divisions are further divided into the following 210 township-level divisions: 109 towns, 2 townships, 99subdistricts. Those are in turn divided into the following village-level divisions: 3,661 neighborhood committees and 1,704 village committees.[32]

[edit]Economy

Skyline of Pudong
Increasing influence over global capital market: Shanghai Stock Exchange
Shanghai Port is the world’s busiestcontainer port
Shanghai is the commercial and financial centre of mainland China. It was the largest and most prosperous city in the Far East during the 1930s, and rapid re-development began in 1990s. This is exemplified by the Pudong District, which became a pilot area for integrated economic reforms.
Today, Shanghai is again one of the most prosperous cities in the world. Its cosmopolitan character, sophisticated and affluent consumers, and highly educated skilled labor force make it highly attractive to overseas investors. Shanghai has recorded double-digit growth for 15 consecutive years since 1992 to become the center of finance and trade in new China.[9] Shanghai is now aiming to be a global finance hub and international shipping center in the near future.[10]
In 2010, Shanghai's total GDP grew to 1.687 trillion RMB (US$256.3 billion) with GDP per capita of 76,000 RMB ($11,540).[5] The three largest service industries are financial services, retail, and real estate. The manufacturing and agricultural sectors accounted for 39.9 percent and 0.7 percent of the total output respectively.[33] Average annual disposable income of Shanghai residents, based on the first three quarters of 2009, was 21,871 RMB.[34]
Located at the heart of the Yangtze River Delta, Shanghai has the world’s busiest container port, which handled 29.05 million TEUs in 2010.[35]
Shanghai was the leading financial centre of Far East in the 1930s and the city has a solid foundation in the financial services industry. The city has set up a complete financial institution, including commercial banks, securities companies, insurance companies, fund management companies, trust companies, futures companies and financial leasing companies. By the end of 2009, there were 787 financial institutions, of which 170 were foreign-invested.[33] In 2009, the Shanghai Stock Exchange ranked third among worldwide stock exchanges in terms of trading volume and sixth in terms of the total capitalization of listed companies, and the trading volume of six key commodities including rubber, copper and zinc on the Shanghai Futures Exchange all ranked first across the world.[36]
Shanghai is now ranked fifth in the latest edition of the Global Financial Centres Index published by the City of London.[37]
Shanghai has constantly optimized and upgraded its industrial structure as well and sped up the development of its advanced manufacture sector. Shanghai plays a key role in China’s heavy industries. A large number of industrial zones, including Shanghai Hongqiao Economic and Technological Development Zone, Jinqiao Export Economic Processing Zone, Minhang Economic and Technological Development Zone, and Shanghai Caohejing High-Tech Development Zone, are backbones of Shanghai's secondary industry. Heavy industries accounted for 78% of the gross industrial output in 2009. China’s largest steelmaker Baosteel Group andJiangnan Shipyard, one of China's oldest shipbuilders are both located in Shanghai.[38] Auto manufacture is another important industry.Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (Group) (“SAIC” for short) is one of the top 3 automotive corporations in China. The company has a strategic partnership with Volkswagen and General Motors.[39]

[edit]Demographics

The pedestrian-only Nanjing Road
The 2010 census revealed that the population of Shanghai had reached 23,019,148, including 8,977,000 long-term migrants, a growth of 37.53% from the 2000 census population of 16,737,734.[4][40] New migrants accounted for the entire increase as the natural population growth rate in Shanghai has been negative since 1993 due to low fertility rate.[41] There is a serious aging problem among Shanghai's registered residents: as of 2009 only 8.3% of the total were under the age of 14, while 22.54% were over 60.[42] Based on population of total administrative area, Shanghai is the second largest of the four direct-controlled municipalities of the People's Republic of China, behind Chongqing, but is generally considered the largest city in China because Chongqing's urban population is much smaller.[6]
98.8% Of Shanghai's residents are of the Han Chinese ethnicity, while 1.2% belong to various minority groups. However, the minority population has grown by 165.54
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