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Discussion keeps the world turning This is Roundtable Chongqing, a city in southwest China carved by mountains, driven by industry, and spiced with passion, is now the number four titan in China's trillion-yuan GDP club. We're exploring how it got here. And what you see in front of you on your desk might affect the way your brain works. Did you know that the right desk décor can help impact your focus, creativity, mood, and productivity? Coming to you live from Beijing, this is Roundtable. I'm He Yang. For today's program, I'm joined by Steve Hatherly and Ding Hong in the studio, first on today's show. Nestled in the heart of southwest China, Chongqing is a city that offers an exhilarating blend of dramatic landscapes, from the towering mountains to the winding Yangtze River and Jialing Rivers. Known for its fiery hotpot and the famous warmth of its people, the city's dynamic climate matches its thriving culture. With a booming economy, Chongqing has risen to become China's fourth largest trillion-yuan economy in 2024, driven by industries such as automotive manufacturing, electronics, and logistics. But it's not just business that's bringing attention to this city. Its cinematic appearances in films and TV dramas also have put it on the radar for travelers and business alike. Let's kick things off by exploring the cities that have made it to China's trillion-yuan club and why Chongqing's spot in this ranking is turning heads. Well, the GDPs of 28 cities here in China surpassed the one trillion-yuan mark, or we're talking about somewhere around 138 billion US dollars in 2024. And of course, the number one and number two cities, Beijing and Shanghai, when we talk about their GDP, they're standing like more than 5 trillion yuan, or close to 5 trillion yuan respectively, then they are followed by Shenzhen, number three, and Chongqing, number four, and Guangzhou at number five. They each exceeded 3 trillion yuan. And among these five in the ranking, the top five, Chongqing is the only city that does not belong to the traditional first-tier cities. Moreover, it's even surpassed the Guangzhou, which is traditionally viewed as a first-tier city. Chongqing's GDP exceeded 3.2 trillion yuan, or $442 billion in 2024, becoming the fourth-largest city in terms of GDP. Though its GDP figure is quite close to that of Guangzhou, it's also interesting to note here that Chongqing's GDP growth figure, the growth rate was 5.7%, much higher than Guangzhou's rate at 2.1%. That's the bigger picture. Really impressive. And I think I want to point out here, pardon me as well, you'll hear this if you listen to Roundtable a lot, first-tier city, first-tier city, it comes up sometimes, right? And I remember when I first moved, I would hear that term and I thought, what exactly are we talking about there? A first-tier city in China, this refers to the metropolis or the cities that play an important role in the country's economy and politics. But in terms of urban scale and infrastructure and fiscal revenue and consumption and talent attraction, first-tier cities generally lead other cities. It's kind of self-explanatory in the title itself, but I thought I'd throw that in there. Yes, definitely. And okay, let me try to paint the picture for you. So the first-tier cities, like you mentioned, Dinghong just now, in China, there are only four. So imagine these as, oh, the big boys in the big league. And now you've got a newcomer that has suppressed one of these big boys in joining this coveted club of being at the top in this trillion yuan club. And that's why everybody's like, who's this little guy? But when you compare it with other competitors, it's like, wow, Chongqing is actually needing some love of attention. And here's why we're talking about it. Because when you look deeper, there's just a lot to publicize, to let you know. And it's really interesting. And also, if we could take one step back and let me give you a little bit more information about these 28 cities that have found a spot in the trillion yuan club here in China, geographically speaking, the eastern region of China has 20 cities with a GDP exceeding one trillion yuan. And that's a clear lead over other regions. Among these, the Yangtze River Delta alone has nine. And the central region is home to four trillion yuan cities, while the western region has three. And currently, there are no cities in the northeastern part of China, or Zhongbei, with a GDP over one trillion yuan. But you've got a strong contender, Dalian, that is trying to work its way. But still, we'll need to see if it can achieve that mark this year. And Zhongxing is number four in this list. So tell us then, if you could, a little bit about Zhongqing. This will be great for people like me who have never been there before and want to learn all weekend about it. Well, I think, politically speaking, it is one of the four municipalities that are under the direct control of the central government, with the other three being Beijing, Shanghai, and Tianjin. And because the city is built upon mountains, it has been nicknamed as a mountain city. It covers an area of more than 80,000 square kilometers. That's my calculation or my impression. That is huge. Yeah, which is more than 60 times of the New York City and more than 50 times of London. I guess we need to clarify. We are not only talking about the urban district of the city alone. We are talking about a territory that includes the city itself and all the counties that belong to this very Zhongqing municipality. That's the entire territory, geographically speaking. So it's like the city and then the surrounding areas. And also we're talking about a city that, well, it's the city and the county areas nearby, but within the Zhongqing municipality jurisdiction, there are 32 million people who live there. And of which 70% or nearly 23 million are its urban permanent residents. Lots of people in a very big space then. You mentioned that it's known for some films. There was a report from Zhongqing daily in November of 2024. And it talked about the development of the city's film and television industry and how it's been booming in recent years. They have over 100 film crews filming in Zhongqing every single year. And you mentioned that it's a city in the mountains. And I think that's part of the reason, isn't it? It's got a very unique terrain and landforms. It's got a lot of rich history there and cultural heritage, very picturesque natural scenery, very modern. We talk about this a lot, don't we? When we talk about Chinese cities, how you've got the mix of the new with the old together blended perfectly, that's happening there as well. And that has given Zhongqing some advantages in film and television creation. People just want to go and film there because it's so beautiful. And also, can I just add one more thing? Zhongqing's proximity to the Yangtze River is important here alongside the mountainous terrain. The river allows it access to major cities downriver such as Wuhan and Hubei and Shanghai on the eastern coast. And it's a significant transportation and industrial hub linking western and eastern parts of China, which we will get into a little bit later. And also, Zhongqing's climate is very humid and misty with fog often shrouding the city, giving it a mysterious cinematic quality. And the air feels thick, especially in summertime. And the frequent rains leave the streets glistening and the buildings half hidden in haze. So Zhongqing's charm definitely lies in this almost like contradictions where you mentioned the modern intensity meets the mystique of its natural surroundings. And it's grounded in these mountainous terrain, yet otherworldly in its appeal because of the climate. And that would be very attractive for filmmakers because a lot of the effects that they might have to create without nature's help, they can do that naturally in Zhongqing. Yeah. And those are very, very ideal situations or the working environment for any film or TV series cruise. And my personal memory about Zhongqing actually was first gained. Well, my first impression was first gained by a movie almost 20 years ago called Crazy Stone. That was a huge black comedy. It was not a blockbuster. It was produced at a very low cost, but very, very success. It's worn best film, best feature film, best director, best original screenplay, et cetera, at the 43rd Golden Horse Awards. It was totally, almost a totally filmed in the streets and alleyways of Zhongqing featuring the city's local dialect. That was a very prominent characteristic of that very movie. And also a local historical temple mingled with the nearby modern architecture, like nearby modern buildings and charming river scenery and the cross river cable tram. Oh, that was a really hilarious movie. And I guess looking at the situation right now, I think plans are on the way on the part of the local authorities to build several film and TV bases in the city and the construction of the forest batch is already completed. Some of them feature beautiful natural scenery and some highlights those historical and cultural heritages and some feature high tech in this very industry. So a lot of things are going on. They've also promoted the application of new audio visual technologies like generative artificial intelligence and virtual shooting and ultra high definition in various aspects of film and TV series creation and shooting and production. In one of six film and TV bases, various scenes can be quickly switched from the vast universe to the bustling cities. I'm talking about the technological film week activity and the fact that they unveiled the first Western film technology innovation center in China and launched the construction of the technological film and television digital asset platform in Zhongqing in 2024. And those things are closely connected. There's also a lot of supporting policies as well, improvement in the awarding and funding measures for major literary and artistic works, including film and television. They promote a supporting plan for films, which is funded a total of 94 projects by over 45 million yuan. That's about $6.2 million. And then they've implemented nine actions and four guarantees to promote the high quality development of online film and TV series. And the city also added a film section in a governance app or a mini program in June of 2024. And by utilizing technologies like big data and VR and AI, it's gathered over 5,000 filming resources across the city, talking about scenes and props and costumes and actors and all the things that go with a film or a TV series. Yes, you can. Well, it'd be ideal if you have the whole movie industrial chain there to facilitate everything that the TV and film production needs. And surprise, surprise, there is one Baishan film and television base that has been taken root in Zhongqing for more than almost 15 years now that has turned out some really great works. What do we know about this vibrant Baishan film and TV base? Well, I guess if you are shooting a film or a TV series under the themes like the old time Zhongqing or some historical events, for example, the Chinese people's war of resistance against the Japanese aggression during the Second World War, then I guess this particular Baishan base is an ideal workplace for you because it boasts many film and TV shooting scenes, including historical scenes depicting this victory monument of the Chinese people's war of resistance against the Japanese aggression, the government building of the calming down government at the time, some old style stores, steam locomotives, the Chao Tianmen Wauf, which features this very prosperous water transport during the old time Zhongqing. There are more than 50 sites that can be used to shoot war related sceneries, accounting for 80 percent of the scenic spots in that very base. I guess these are old these are old infrastructures that are still kept there, right? So they would look they would look really authentic. They're not artificial or man-made, so you're really adding a sense of authenticity to your production. That's the idea. Yeah. And with more modern productions, I don't know if you remember the 2019 hit Shao Nian and Ni or Better Days. That was a movie about bullying and a really heartbreaking story of two very young people. Yeah. So that movie was filmed in Chongqing as well, which featured a lot of the nostalgic buildings as such as such. And yes, I still remember that from the movie. It has to be quite a prideful thing, I would think, for the citizens of Chongqing because so many films, so many TV series are shot there. They're familiar with the locations, I'm sure. So they get to watch a TV show or get to watch a movie. Oh, yeah, I know exactly where that is. Yeah. Yeah. Being from Nova Scotia, Canada, I don't get I never have that luxury before. Right. And and it's also such a different look from what we have here in Beijing or we have in Hangzhou or Chengdu, the two cities that featured in the previous two shows this week. And what do you see are some key initiatives that have propelled Chongqing's rise in intelligent manufacturing and how has this transformed the industrial sector if we may move from the movies to industry? Sure. Yeah, there was a Xinhua report from March of 2024 that talked about Zhao Bin, deputy director of Chongqing's Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, pointing out that, as you mentioned, intelligent manufacturing is the primary direction for industry upgrades. Zhao said that the traditional manufacturing, it's been troubled by a shortage of skilled workers and low production efficiency. But the the solution to that is breakthroughs in digital technology, new energy, novel materials. They've presented opportunities for China's manufacturing to transition toward high end and also smarter and green practices. Also, the use of robots, too, and smart equipment that's really liberated intelligent factories in Chongqing from being dependent on laborers to at least some extent. Well, so I guess here there were a cup of prominent examples going on in the city. For example, this sunny Chongqing Industrial Park. It is situated in the city's Liangjiang new area. And here a large excavator can roll out from the smart production line every guess what, every 17.3 minutes. On average, there is basically a minimal human presence because robots are taking care of most, the majority of the missions in that very factory. For example, more than 700 robots are involved in in welding and other missions, thereby enabling the production line to operate primarily without human intervention, including assessment. And according to the park's general manager, this extensive use of intelligent equipment is allowing for a workforce of just 300 workers to manage 24 production lines. Well, so and the economic output is huge. 300 workers, 700 robots on 24 production lines. That's quite the production unit and they've yielded an annual output of over 5 billion yuan, about 700 million dollars, proving that it's effective. Yes. And also nearly 50 percent of the world's laptops are made in Chongqing. Just just think about that. And also the panel, the total panel production capacity in the city has jumped to the seven cities in the country. And it is a powerful production and manufacturing hub for sure. Also, we see that car or new energy vehicle manufacturing is a pillar industry here. So could we go into some of the details there? Yeah. The city's automobile production surpassed two and a half million units in 2024. That's an increase of about nine and a half percent, a little under nine and a half percent year on year. But that's significantly ahead of the national car production growth rate. And among those, there were over nine hundred and fifty three thousand new energy vehicles with a year on year growth of ninety point five percent. They almost doubled it. And the city was a runner up in the country in terms of auto production in 2023. So lots of cars coming out of Chongqing, too. I guess on the corporate front, Chongqing based the carmaker series, this company delivered nearly 18000 EVs in January 2025 alone, of which some seventy percent towards flagship model A Ito M9 SUV. This means that this particular model is somehow moving to solidify its position as the top selling car priced over five hundred thousand yuan in China for 10 months in a row. And by the way, if you have watched the 2025 CCTV Spring Festival Gala, you might remember this very scene, an intelligent light show at the Gala's Chongqing value. So the show was performed by seven hundred and eighty cars of this very Ito M9 model at the at the company's super factory, mega factory in Chongqing. Wow. That was a white the scene. Yeah. Yeah. And also we've seen that Chang'an Auto has established a fully equipped 5G factory in Chongqing, boasting more than twenty five hundred seats of equipment across seven factory workshops, creating a virtual factory in the digital world. It's so interesting to see the future already here in the city. Yeah. What do you see as the advantages that have, you know, helped Chongqing to make all of this happen? They have a complete and we've talked about this before when in a city, if you have a complete industrial chain, it just makes so makes things so much easier in terms of production. They've also improved the stability and efficiency of that complete industrial chain. How will they coordinated closely by the upstream and downstream enterprises? And that's led to a lower production cost and also elevated industrial competitiveness as well. And when you can do that, you know, we talked about how having film studios down the street from each other or editing studios next to production studios, it just makes everything so much easier. So when you have that complete industrial chain all in the same location, it's just more effective. Yes. And Chongqing's aerospace sector has been expanding rapidly. What are some of the major projects that are shaping its growth in this high tech industry? Well, the city is now home to more than 100 aerospace related companies, including, for example, the star Beidou Intelligence Connected Vehicle Technology. And also there is the Chongqing On Space Technology, which is China's first ever private sector businesses, private sector business that has been licensed to design the manufacturer carrier rockets. Well, that was and according to local media reports sometime last year, I saw the related output value of the city's aerospace information technology industry is about 30 billion, 30 billion yuan or more than four billion U.S. dollars with an average annual growth rate of more than 15%. They have plans to by 2027, they hope to form an aerospace information industry cluster with a core output value of 50 billion. You want almost seven million dollars. So plans for the future. All right. And Chongqing's industries and cultural moments are making it an unmissable destination for both commerce and tourism to visitors from inside China and around the world. Come see, taste and experience Chongqing for yourself.