Pudong is a district of Shanghai located east of the Huangpu, the river which flows through central Shanghai. The name Pudong was originally applied to the Huangpu's east bank, directly across from the west bank or Puxi, the historic city center. It now refers to the broader Pudong New Area, a state-level new area which extends all the way to the East China Sea. The traditional area of Pudong is now home to the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone and the Shanghai Stock Exchange and many of Shanghai's best-known buildings, such as the Oriental Pearl Tower, the Jin Mao Tower, the Shanghai World Financial Center, and the Shanghai Tower. These modern skyscrapers directly face Puxi's historic Bund, a remnant of former foreign concessions in China. The rest of the new area includes the Port of Shanghai, the Shanghai Expo and Century Park, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Shanghai Pudong International Airport, the Jiuduansha Wetland Nature Reserve, Nanhui New City, and the Shanghai Disney Resort.

History

Pudong—literally "The East Bank of the Huangpu River"—originally referred only to the less-developed land across from Shanghai's Old City and foreign concessions. The area was mainly farmland and only slowly developed, with warehouses and wharfs near the shore administered by the districts of Puxi on the west bank: Huangpu, Yangpu, and Nanshi. Pudong was originally established as a county in 1958 until 1961 which the county was split among Huangpu, Yangpu, Nanshi, Wusong and Chuansha County. Premier Li Peng announced the policy of Pudong's opening and development on April 18, 1990. Speaking at a celebration for the fifth anniversary of the Shanghai Volkswagen Corporation, Li stated that "some policies of the economic and technological zones and Special Economic Zones can be implemented in the Pudong area". Li stated that future investors from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan were welcomed and that China would provide preferential conditions for cooperation and improve the investment environment. The occasion is often described as Pudong's "birthday". Nonetheless, development in the area was slow for the rest of 1990. On October 1, 1992, the original area of Pudong County and Chuansha County merged and established Pudong New Area. In 1993, the Chinese government set up a Special Economic Zone in Chuansha, creating the Pudong New Area. Deng Xiaoping had initiated its development three years earlier to build further confidence in Reform and Opening Up. Pudong's description as a New Area served to distinguish it from existing SEZs. It had even more open policies than existing SEZs, in terms of attracting foreign direct investment and developing the local economy. The western tip of the Pudong district was designated as the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone and has become a financial hub of modern China. Several landmark buildings were constructed, including the Oriental Pearl Tower, and the supertall Jin Mao Building (420.5 m), Shanghai World Financial Center (494 m) and Shanghai Tower (632 m), the world's first trio of adjacent supertall skyscrapers. These buildings—all along Century Avenue and visible from the historic Bund—now form the most common skyline of Shanghai. In official discourses on urbanization in China, Pudong is considered the paradigmatic example of the 1990s approach to urbanization. On May 6, 2009, it was disclosed that the State Council had approved the proposal to merge Nanhui District with Pudong and comprise the majority of eastern Shanghai. In 2010, Pudong was host to the main venues of the Shanghai Expo, whose grounds now form a public park. Pudong New Area consist of the original Pudong County (northeastern portion of Shanghai County), Chuansha County, and Nanhui County.

Climate

Pudong has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), influenced by monsoons and Siberian winds as well as rains and typhoons from the Pacific. The average annual temperature in Pudong is 17.2 C. The temperatures are highest on average in July and August, at around 28.6 C, and lowest in January, at around 5.1 C.

Government

Districts of the Direct-Controlled Municipality of Shanghai are administratively on the same level as prefecture-level cities. However, the government of Pudong has a status equivalent to that of a sub-provincial city, which is a half-level above a prefecture-level city. This is due to Pudong's size and importance as the financial hub of China. The Pudong Communist Party Secretary is the top office of the district, followed by the district governor of Pudong. The Pudong party chief is customarily also a member of the Shanghai Party Standing Committee. On April 27, 2015, the People's Government of Pudong New Area is working with China (Shanghai) Pilot Free-Trade Zone Administrative Committee.

Demographics

Pudong is bounded by the Huangpu River in the west and the East China Sea in the east. Pudong is distinguished from Puxi ("West Bank"), the older part of Shanghai. It has an area of 1210.4 km2 and, according to the 2020 census, a population of 5,681,512 inhabitants, accounting for around 22.8 percent of Shanghai and 1.85 million more than in 2010. Pudong's resident population growth is well above national average because it is a popular immigration destination. The 2020 census shows a 8% increase in the last decade, or an annual pace of 0.8%. Excluding immigrants, the birth rate in 2010 was 0.806% while the death rate is 0.729, resulting a net growth of 0.077%. The total fertility rate is 1.03, well below the replacement level. The district actually has a negative registered household population growth if immigrants are excluded, thus the growth is purely driven by immigration. The 2020 census shows a population density of 3,006/km2. About 3/4 of the population live in the northern part and part of city center called "Northern Territory". 1/4 live in the "Southern Territory" that was the Nanhui District. The Northern Territory has a 6,667 population density, while the Southern Territory has 1,732/km2. Suburbs saw a greater increase in population during 2000–2010 with the help of the city's suburb expansion policy. Some counties in the traditional city center saw a population decrease.

Subdistricts and towns

Education

Universities and higher education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools: International schools: Other private schools:

Economy

With the Nanhui District merger in May 2009, the size of Pudong's economy grew. The district's 2022 gross domestic product amounts to an estimated CN¥1.601 trillion (US$238 billion), with services comprising 74.7% of economic output. Its GDP per capita was CN¥281,180, corresponding to around US$41,755 by nominal values and US$68,647 by purchasing power parity values. The area is divided into four distinct economic districts. Apart from Lujiazui Trade and Finance Zone, there is Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, the largest free trade zone in mainland China covering approximately 10 km2 in north-east Pudong. The Jinqiao Export Processing Zone is another major industrial area in Pudong covering 19 km2 Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park is a special area for technology-oriented businesses. The Pudong area continues to experience rapid development, especially in the commercial sector, with 1.3 million square meters of prime office space reaching completion in 2008, more than the previous two years combined. Pudong has also attracted considerable fixed asset and real estate investment, reporting 87.268 billion RMB in fixed asset investment and 27.997 billion RMB in real estate investment in 2008. The newest Disney resort, with a Disneyland included, is located in Pudong, which opened to tourists in June 2016.

Businesses

Bao Steel has its head office in the Bao Steel Tower in Pudong. Comac has its head office in Pudong. The headquarters of Yangtze River Express, a cargo airline, are in the Pufa Tower in Pudong. Hang Seng Bank has its mainland offices in the Hang Seng Bank Tower in Pudong. Kroll has an office in the Hang Seng Bank Tower. Google has its Shanghai offices in the Shanghai World Financial Center.

Transportation

The Shanghai Pudong International Airport opened its doors in 1999, shortening the travel time for visitors. In the same year, Line 2 of the Shanghai Metro commenced services. An extension brought the line further east, where it serves the airport. Other lines, namely Lines 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13 and 16 also have sections that serve parts of Pudong. A magnetic levitation train began operating in 2004, moving passengers between the airport and Longyang Road Metro station. Pudong is connected to Puxi by several tunnels and four major bridges. The first of these bridges were the Nanpu Bridge (1991) and the Yangpu Bridge (1993). The Xupu Bridge opened in 1996. The latest of these is Lupu Bridge, which is the world's second longest arch bridge and was completed in 2002. Currently there are five tunnels that link the two sides, Dapu Rd. Tunnel, the first tunnel across the Huangpu River, Yan'an Rd. Tunnel, running east–west, and Dalian Rd. Tunnel, running north–south, Fuxing Rd. Tunnel, complementing the Yan'an Rd. Tunnel, Waihuan Tunnel, one part of Shanghai Outer Ring Express. Two new tunnels linking Lujiazui to Puxi are under construction. Roads in Pudong have no particular longitudinal or latitudinal orientation. Major thoroughfares Pudong Avenue, Zhangyang Road and Yanggao Road run east–west until Yangpu Bridge before turning gradually to become north–south. Century Avenue crosses all three major roads and extends from Lujiazui to Century Park. Yanggao Road extends south to the A20, Shanghai's outer Ring road, which runs east–west from Xupu Bridge and then north–south beginning at the interchange near Renxi Village, when the east–west expressway turns into Yingbin Avenue, headed for Pudong International Airport.

Metro

Pudong is currently served by ten metro lines and one tram line operated by Shanghai Metro and one maglev line operated by Shanghai Maglev Train and one suburban line operated by China Railway:

Gallery

Twin towns — sister cities

Pudong is twinned with: