Business environment

Location

Harbin is located to the southwest of Northeast China’s Heilongjiang province, and the center of Northeast Asia. As a megacity with the largest area among provincial cities and the third-largest population in China, Harbin is the political, economic, and cultural center of Northeast China. Harbin is also a key city on the first Eurasian Land Bridge and a key air corridor. 

Transportation

Harbin has five railways connecting the city to inland areas: the Harbin-Dalian, Harbin-Suifenhe, Harbin-Manzhouli, Harbin-Beian and Lafa-Harbin railway lines. 

Harbin’s water transportation lines crisscross the Songhua, Amur, Wusuli and Nenjiang rivers, and the lines lead to ports in Russia’s Far East. Through river and ocean transportation, ships can travel directly through the Tartar Strait to Japan, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Republic of Korea (ROK) and Southeast Asia. 

There are 23 Chinese and foreign airlines offering services at Harbin Taiping International Airport. They operate 82 domestic and 47 international air routes. The local air traffic network links Harbin to major domestic cities as well as to neighboring countries such as Russia, Japan, the ROK, as well as to Europe and the United States. 

Natural Resources

Harbin is situated on a plain with 1.98 million hectares of agricultural land, most of which boasts black soil rich in nutrients. Originating from Tianchi Lake on Changbai Mountain, the Songhua River travels across the middle of Harbin from east to west, making it the river with the largest irrigation volume. There have been 63 types of mineral resources discovered in Harbin, and 25 varieties of mineral reserves. There are 14 nature reserves at provincial or national level. The total area of nature reserves is 217,000 hectares. There are 80 kinds of wildlife and eight varieties of plant that are listed as priorities for protection.

Industry

Harbin boasts a diversified industrial base, with equipment manufacturing, food, pharmaceuticals, and petrochemicals as its pillar industries. Ice and snow-themed tourism has become more popular in recent years. To transform and upgrade its industrial structure, the government of Harbin is making efforts to develop high-tech industries such as aviation, 3D printing and robotics.

Scientific Research

There are 455 research institutions, eight State-level enterprise technical centers and 64 provincial-level enterprise technical centers in Harbin. Roughly 38,400 people are engaged in scientific research institutions, such as colleges and universities, research institutions, and industrial enterprise research and development centers. Annual expenditure for research and development totaled 6.34 billion yuan, an increase of 14.6 percent.

A total of 13,005 patent applications were accepted, a growth rate of 99.3 percent. The number of registrations for technology contracts reached 6,260, growing by 57.5 percent in 2010. The number of technology contracts totaled 1,709. A total of 84 scientific and technological achievements were granted the Harbin Science and Technology Award in 2012.

Economy

Harbin’s GDP reached 610.16 billion yuan ($91.43 billion) in 2016, an increase of 7.3 percent year-on-year. Primary industry represented 69.12 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.1 percent; second industry increased by 189.67 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.7 percent; and tertiary industry increased by 351.38 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.9 percent. The amount of per capita gross regional domestic product totaled 63,445 yuan, an increase of 8.7 percent year-on-year. By 2016, Harbin had established trade contacts with 146 countries and regions. Total import and export values for the year amounted to $3.97 billion.