New Economy Blossoms in Old Yangpu Factory

New Economy Blossoms in Old Yangpu Factory

Xinmin Weekly

Issue 46， 2019

Industrial ruins have long been an important feature of Yangpu District of Shanghai and the pressing question asked over the years is how to reconstruct the old factory that was such an iconic landmark in the district. The local residents took the initiative to inject new energy and vitality into Yangpu. In 2014， an architect walked into the plant， which had been abandoned for 14 years， and restructuring began. The project was called Changyang Valley.

It took only four years for Changyang Valley to grow from a dilapidated factory building into a green business district. Changyang Valley has a total annual production value of RMB 3.5 billion （US $501 million）， with an average output value of RMB 60， 000 （US $8，589.71） per square meter. There is now a new saying， “Zhongguancun in the North， Shenzhen Bay in the South， and Changyang Valley in the East.”

The success of Changyang Valley is largely credited to the fact that it remains based in Yangpu， has an international orientation， and is knowledge driven. Through measures such as reducing the entry threshold of start-ups， employing the best in domestic and foreign innovative talents， building a platform for knowledge-based industries， and improving the incubation network of scientific research， it will cooperate with schools and business to create a new path for international talents and innovation-driven development.

Garbage Sorting： A New Test of Social Governance

South

Issue 23， 2019

At present， the annual domestic waste output in China is about 400 million tons， increasing at a rate of about 8 percent every year. Waste sorting seems to be a small matter， but actually it is vital to the overall situation of building an environmentally friendly country and it is also one of the yardsticks to measure the modernization level of a country. The implementation of waste sorting policy is related to the living environment of the public， the conservation of resources， and is an important embodiment of social civilization.

Waste sorting is a public issue of social governance. From a practical point of view， it is a process of fully mobilizing all parties to participate in social governance， a process of inclusivity. Therefore， sorting garbage goes beyond the matter per se， but become a test of the national governance system and governance capacity.

The new practice of governance at the primary level reflects the logic of national governance. The modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity has never been a remote abstract concept， but is closely related to everyone.

New Survival Rules of Chinas Automobile Market

China Economic Weekly

Issue 22， 2019

In 2018， the sales volume of passenger vehicles in China was 23.71 million， down 2.8 percent year-onyear； in 2019， the decline was even worse， down 9.7 percent year-onyear in the first 10 months. The downward trend began in July 2018， which was the first time in over 28 years that Chinas passenger car sales had declined. By October 2019， Chinas car market had been in a downward spiral for 16 consecutive months.

It is generally believed that the continuous decline of the current market is the overlying result of market and macroeconomic factors.

After a period of adjustment， Chinas automobile market will still have room for growth in the future. The key is how to find the right development path in this adjustment process. In both the increment dimension and the stock dimension， consumers show strong potential demand. “The slowdown of Chinas car market is only a shortterm challenge， strong demand of Chinese consumers shows that the future is still promising.”

“Now most participants in the industry have realized that it will be difficult for Chinas auto market to have continuous high growth in the short term， and market adjustment will lead to more sales volume by top enterprises，”Chen Xueqin， Secretary General of Chongqing Automobile Business Association told China Economic Weekly， adding that the new reality will force businesses to find new survival rules.

Night Economy

Insight China

Issue 33， 2019

When night falls， the lights start to shine， and the days work ends. But night heralds another world and for many people their “day” is just beginning. Shopping， catering， entertainment， studying， tourism， leisure … various kinds of night activities have become the trend of the times.

At night， the attraction of food is the most difficult thing to resist. Between 7 and 8 p.m. is the peak consumption time at FreshHema stores， an experiment of Alibaba Groups new retail concept. After 9 p.m.， the consumption of take-out catering in the second-tier cities sees the biggest increase. From 11 p.m. to midnight， more than 83 percent of well-reputed shops are still in operation. And the proportion was 60 percent after midnight.

People like to enjoy all forms of entertainment at night. Music concerts， operas， Chinese folk art， and sports events all have strong appeal. Sanlian Taofen Bookstore， Page One and other 24-hour bookstores have become popular places for people to visit at night. Overnight museum and night tour exhibition halls are also attracting crowds with their innovative programs and long opening hours.

For a long time， due to the influence of climate， culture， and other factors， the night economy in southern China has had a natural advantage. Surprisingly， therefore， in the latest consumption trends， the night economy of northern cities is particularly outstanding. Many policy measures to reengineer night consumption are changing the former perception that northern China goes to sleep at night.