Foshan, historically known as Jihua Township, traces its origins to the Jin Dynasty, received its current name during the Tang Dynasty, developed into a township during the Song Dynasty, and flourished during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Over the centuries, its thriving manufacturing sector has brought countless honors to Foshan. Historically known as the “Pottery Capital of the South” and the “Iron Capital of the South,” it now serves as the “World’s Factory.”

As a major national manufacturing hub, Foshan boasts unparalleled industrial infrastructure and supply chain advantages. In the 2023 ranking of China’s industrial output value for enterprises above designated size, Foshan achieved an impressive total exceeding 3 trillion yuan, successfully ascending to the position of China’s “Fourth Industrial City.” This has further solidified its reputation as a major manufacturing and industrial center.

To explore further development opportunities, the “High Quality · New Comprehensive Bonded Zone · Shared Future — 2024 Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone Investment Promotion Conference,” organized by the Foshan Investment Promotion Bureau and hosted by GuChuan United Co., Ltd., will be held on May 30 in Shunde District, Foshan.
This promotion event aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the policy benefits offered by the Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone and showcase its unique advantages in areas such as tariff preferences, trade facilitation, cross-border financial services, and efficient logistics. Government leaders at all levels, corporate executives, and industry elites from Foshan will gather to jointly explore new opportunities, new prospects, and new pathways for corporate investment in Foshan. We sincerely invite our fellow entrepreneurs to attend this event and join us in this grand occasion!

The Core of the Pearl River Delta: A City with a 3 Trillion Yuan Industrial Economy

Located in the heart of the Pearl River Delta, Foshan not only boasts a rich historical and cultural heritage but is also a major manufacturing hub in China. As a key node city within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Foshan has leveraged its unique geographical advantages and industrial strength to become the economic and trade center and a comprehensive transportation hub in the western wing of the Pearl River Delta.

In recent years, Foshan has surged forward at a remarkable pace, becoming a key driver of Guangdong’s economic takeoff.In 2023, the city’s GDP reached 1.3276 trillion yuan, solidifying its position as Guangdong’s third-largest economy and accounting for approximately one-tenth of the province’s total. Foshan also became the second prefecture-level city in the province to surpass 3 trillion yuan in total industrial output value for enterprises above designated size. Its investment in industrial technological transformation ranked first in the province, and its supply of industrial land has topped the provincial list for two consecutive years.

In the fierce competition among cities with industries worth over 100 billion yuan, Foshan has stood out, ranking sixth nationwide and boasting the highest number of such industries in Guangdong. Notably, among the top ten cities, Foshan is the only major manufacturing hub that does not rely on the computer, communications, and electronics sector. In particular, the electrical equipment manufacturing industry, as Foshan’s core sector, has demonstrated exceptional competitiveness.

Furthermore, the five districts under Foshan’s jurisdiction consistently rank among China’s top 100 districts. Among them, Shunde District and Nanhai District have performed particularly well, frequently securing top positions. Meanwhile, Beijiao Town and Shishan Town have both claimed spots among the nation’s top four towns with GDP exceeding 100 billion yuan. In Foshan, nearly 90% of towns and sub-districts have surpassed the 10-billion-yuan GDP threshold. This undoubtedly serves as strong evidence of Foshan’s robust economic strength.

According to data from the Foshan Investment Promotion Bureau, the city’s total contracted investment reached a record high of 402.2 billion yuan in 2023. From 2021 to 2023, Foshan achieved leapfrog development for three consecutive years, successively surpassing the 200-billion, 300-billion, and 400-billion yuan investment thresholds.

Last year, Foshan successfully attracted six strategic emerging industry projects, including Xingyuan Materials, Saiwei Transmission, and FAW-Volkswagen, each with an investment scale exceeding 10 billion yuan. This demonstrates that despite the complex and challenging domestic and international economic environment, Foshan has continued to win the recognition and favor of investors through its unique investment environment and development potential.

A National Manufacturing Hub with a Strong Industrial Foundation

Foshan is renowned for its manufacturing sector, boasting a solid industrial foundation and a comprehensive range of industries. Currently, the city has successfully established two industrial clusters worth over 1 trillion yuan and ten clusters worth over 100 billion yuan, covering 31 major manufacturing categories.

Among these, Foshan leads the world in the production of nine types of products, including ceramics, microwave ovens, electric fans, refrigerators, air conditioners, and dishwashers. Furthermore, 80% of these products are closely tied to people’s daily lives, and 90% of the industries have achieved full-chain self-sufficiency, demonstrating a complete and mature industrial system. Within China’s “trillion-yuan GDP club,” Foshan is one of the few cities where manufacturing accounts for over 50% of the economy.

Leveraging its robust industrial foundation, Foshan is continuing to write a new chapter of development in the new era. The 2024 Foshan Municipal Government Work Report clearly outlines the city’s development path: unwaveringly upholding manufacturing as the cornerstone, accelerating the process of new industrialization, and striving to establish a new reputation as a manufacturing powerhouse.

To achieve this goal, Foshan is pursuing a two-pronged approach. On one hand, it is vigorously cultivating and expanding emerging industrial clusters, focusing on fields such as new energy storage, pharmaceuticals and healthcare, next-generation displays, industrial robots, new materials, and safety and emergency response, to promote the aggregation of these emerging industries into clusters and create new engines of economic growth.

At the same time, Foshan is committed to driving innovation and development in high-end equipment manufacturing, such as CNC machine tools, precision instruments, and large-scale testing equipment. It is actively laying the groundwork for future industries including green hydrogen, artificial intelligence, and life sciences, exploring new industrial development pathways driven by technological R&D and diversified application scenarios to accelerate the formation of new-quality productive forces.

Currently, Foshan is advancing the construction of the Foshan North Strategic Emerging Industries Park and the “Double Ten Parks” (namely, the “Ten Innovation-Driven Specialized Manufacturing Parks” and the “Ten Modern Service Industry Clusters”). Furthermore, the approval and establishment of the Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone will inject even stronger momentum into the extension of Foshan’s industrial chains, the further improvement of industrial support systems, and the cultivation and development of new industries.

Focusing on the Comprehensive Bonded Zone to Explore New Development Opportunities

The Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone was approved for establishment by the State Council in November 2023. It is the third comprehensive bonded zone within the Guangzhou Customs District, following the Guangzhou Baiyun Airport Comprehensive Bonded Zone and the Guangzhou Nansha Comprehensive Bonded Zone. With a planned area of 1.13 square kilometers, it is bounded by the planned Baian Road to the east, Gaofu Road to the south, the planned Shugang Zongyi Road to the west, and the planned Qixing Road to the north.

The zone boasts significant locational advantages and excellent transportation links. It is equidistant from Foshan Shatou Airport, the under-construction Pearl River Delta Hub Airport, and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, all of which are just a 1- to 1.5-hour drive away.
The Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone is adjacent to Shunde Xingang—the largest river-sea combined transport foreign trade feeder port in the western Pearl River Delta region—located just 1.5 kilometers away. Additionally, it is closely connected to the three major ports of Rongqi, Beijiao, and Leliu, linking Shunde, Nanhai, and Jiangmen to form an efficient logistics network. The surrounding key import-export trade zones further highlight its unique geographical advantages.
The establishment of the Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone will create a platform where multiple parties can complement each other’s strengths, further strengthening the clustering of port-related industries. Here, enterprises can benefit from the policy advantages of “bonded import, tax refund upon entry into the zone, and tax-free operations within the zone,” enabling them to better coordinate domestic and international market demands and resources while conducting trade, supply chain logistics, and processing and manufacturing operations.

Standing at a new starting point, the Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone is committed to building a “1+2+2” industrial model centered on advanced manufacturing, supported by logistics distribution and sales services, and complemented by R&D, design, testing, and maintenance.In line with the trends of high-quality development and high-level opening-up, the Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone will leverage its strategic, resource, and openness advantages to play a radiating, driving, and exemplary role. It will highlight its core bonded functions to create a convenient and efficient channel for enterprises engaged in international procurement, distribution, logistics, and processing.
Moving forward, Foshan City will continue to uphold the development philosophy of “prioritizing manufacturing,” actively promoting the clustering and development of diverse enterprises—including those engaged in processing and manufacturing, R&D and design, testing and maintenance, and trade and logistics—within the Foshan Comprehensive Bonded Zone. We will vigorously cultivate and expand emerging industrial clusters, comprehensively enhance our integrated service capabilities, and strive to attract more high-quality enterprises and projects to take root here through the most favorable environment and the most attentive service.
Here, Foshan extends its most sincere invitation to you and eagerly looks forward to welcoming entrepreneurs to visit Foshan in person to experience the city’s investment appeal firsthand. Foshan will embrace guests from all corners of the globe with an even more open and inclusive attitude. Let us join hands and move forward together to create a brilliant future!