Dense signals! China's largest province has changed

Western cities

2024-06-12 22:35Posted in Sichuan Finance and Economics Creators

Text丨 Western Jun

If you want to get rich, build roads first.

Recently, Xinjiang, China's largest province and region, is frantically reaping dividends on the road.

First of all, the intermodal train of the new western land-sea corridor (Xinjiang-Chongqing) was sent from the China-Europe freight train assembly center in the Urumqi International Dry Port Area, and after gathering goods in Chongqing, it was bound for Southeast Asian countries through the new western land-sea corridor.

This marks the opening of a new path for China's farthest inland province from the sea.

Then, after nearly 30 years of planning, the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan) railway, which starts in Kashgar, Xinjiang, suddenly came the news of the successful signing of the intergovernmental agreement - another international land corridor in Xinjiang is about to emerge.

If we look at it from a longer perspective and more indicators, the above two new developments are just one of the footnotes to the sneaky counterattack of the largest and most often overlooked inland province.

China's largest province is embarking on an all-round upheaval, and the impact is by no means limited to its own.

01

Xinjiang, which is "connected to eight countries by five mouths and connected to Europe and Asia all the way", is definitely the most special province in China, and there is no one.

But for quite a long time, Xinjiang has always given the impression that Xinjiang has played a prominent role in security and stability. Its performance in economic development is often rarely compared with other places.

However, in recent years, Xinjiang's presence in this area has been continuously strengthened.

Last month, the State Council Information Office held a series of press conferences on the theme of "promoting high-quality development", which disclosed a set of impressive data:

In 2023, the growth rate of six major indicators in Xinjiang, including GDP, investment, consumption, import and export, finance, and resident income, will rank among the top 5 in the country.

In the first quarter of this year, Xinjiang's leading momentum continued.

The GDP growth rate was 5.6%, 0.3 percentage points higher than the national level. The nominal growth rate reached 6.4%, which was the first in the country along with Zhejiang and Beijing.

In addition, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 8.0 percent, the investment in fixed assets increased by 12.8 percent, the general public budget revenue increased by 10.7 percent, and the import and export of foreign trade increased by 42.7 percent, and the main indicators were better than expected.

In terms of population, Xinjiang's performance may also exceed many people's expectations.

In 2023, Xinjiang's permanent population will increase by 110,000, making it one of the only 10 provinces and cities in the country to achieve an increase in permanent population, and the increase ranks first in the central and western regions.

In fact, judging from the data of the "Seven Censuses", Xinjiang's population performance is also remarkable:

It is 4.039 million more than the "Six Censuses", and the increase exceeds that of Sichuan, Hebei, Hunan, Anhui and other provinces with large populations, with a growth rate of 18.52%, ranking among the top in the country.

Among them, the inter-provincial inflow increased by 1.948 million, nearly half of the increase in the total permanent population.

02

Such a performance is indeed hard-won for Xinjiang, and it is inseparable from the support of the whole country.

One of the landmark measures is that in March 2010, the National Conference on Counterpart Support for Xinjiang identified 19 provinces and cities to undertake the task of counterpart support for Xinjiang.

In this kind of assistance mission, economic development naturally comes first.

The Ninth National Conference on Counterpart Support for Xinjiang held last year clearly pointed out:

It is necessary to continue to further promote employment-oriented industrial assistance to Xinjiang, and accelerate the construction of a modern industrial system that reflects Xinjiang's characteristic advantages.

In the current internal and external environment, Xinjiang's geographical advantages are more relied upon, and all signs show that the pace of Xinjiang's opening up and development is accelerating.

At the policy level, in November last year, the Xinjiang Free Trade Zone was officially established, becoming China's 22nd free trade zone and the first free trade zone established in China's northwest border region.

At the infrastructure level, the opening up of a new path to the sea and the new progress of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway show that Xinjiang's open channel is accelerating its expansion.

This is determined by the peculiarities of Xinjiang.

On the one hand, deep within the Eurasian continent, Xinjiang is relatively far away from most provinces in China, and its economic ties are relatively low.

On the other hand, Xinjiang shares borders with eight neighboring countries, and has the inherent advantage of being close to the international market, especially opening up to the west.

It can be said that whether or not it can fully stimulate its unique advantages in opening up is the key factor in whether Xinjiang can "counterattack".

Today's series of support measures and big actions can be said to focus on this aspect.

That's not all, though.

At present, there are two other huge changes in Xinjiang that have attracted much attention.

First, in 2023, Xinjiang will rank first in the country in terms of total grain output and sown area, and its grain output will achieve "eight consecutive increases", which is changing from "regional balance and slight surplus" to "regional surplus and supply to the country".

Second, in the first four months of this year, the export value of Xinjiang's "new three" products such as electric vehicles, photovoltaic products, and lithium batteries increased by 152.1% year-on-year, becoming an important part of Xinjiang's new foreign trade momentum.

This means that Xinjiang is not only strengthening its connection with the outside world, but also its own "hematopoietic capacity" is also increasing.

From the perspective of the strategic positioning given by the state, Xinjiang can be described as a "pentagonal warrior":

The Asia-Europe golden corridor and the bridgehead for opening to the west, the strategic fulcrum for building a new development pattern, the national strategic support base for energy resources, the important supply base for high-quality agricultural and animal husbandry products in the country, and the strategic positioning of the strategic barrier for maintaining national geopolitical security.

However, the top two - the Asia-Europe golden corridor and the bridgehead for opening up to the west and the strategic fulcrum for building a new development pattern are all directly related to opening up and development.

In fact, this accurately embodies the 14-character principle: to ensure development with stability, and to promote stability with development.

In the current environment, this principle will be more fully reflected.

03

In the economic system of a large country, the "depth" of security and development has always been an important embodiment of the ability to resist risks.

This also means that the changes in the external environment in different periods will give different roles and opportunities to cities and regions in different locations.

Now, taking into account the foundation and advantages of all aspects, Xinjiang is gradually moving from the rear to the foreground and playing a more important role in the economic map.

Xinjiang can also be said to live up to expectations:

Increasing population is the best expression of economic and social dynamism and one of the fundamental elements to ensure its sustainability.

The expansion of open channels not only increases its own ability to connect with the outside world, but also opens up new open space for the country.

The enhancement of the ability to guarantee food and other resources is a concrete embodiment of the continuous consolidation of the security foundation.

It can be said that the current Xinjiang shows the temperament of "all wants". The outside world also needs to be given a new perspective when looking at this mysterious area.

When this "inland" area is not without mystery, constantly refreshing the imagination and stereotypes of the outside world, it will certainly cast new variables on regional competition.

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