Editor's note: China's economy maintained resilient growth in 2022 despite pressures such as epidemic resurgences and a complex global environment. According to the latest data published by local statistics authorities, Beijing remains the only northern city on the list of top 10 Chinese cities by GDP in 2022, exceeding the 4-trillion-yuan threshold last year along with the first-placed city of Shanghai.

Shenzhen remained in third place with a GDP of over 3.2 trillion yuan, while Chengdu in southwest China's Sichuan province ranked seventh and became the latest Chinese city with GDP exceeding 2 trillion yuan in 2022.

Notably, Chongqing overtook Guangzhou to take fourth place due to the rapid growth of its strategic emerging industries and construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle. The output of its high-tech products such as new energy vehicles, photovoltaic cells, industrial robots, liquid crystal display modules and service robots increased by 140%, 40.1%, 31.8%, 21.4% and 19.5%, respectively. Chongqing also bolstered investment in infrastructure to boost its connectivity with Chengdu, and 354 related projects with an investment value of over 1 billion yuan are currently under construction.

As the new year begins and the pandemic wanes, cities across China have ramped up efforts to ensure sustained economic growth. Based on the growth targets put forward in the local government work reports, nine of these top 10 cities will achieve a total GDP of over 2 trillion yuan this year, and the top five cities are expected to exceed the 3-trillion-yuan threshold.

Source: Local statistics authorities [Chart produced by Zhu Bochen/China.org.cn]