Overview of Henan
Situated in the hinterland of Central China, Henan is also known as "Zhongyuan" (literally means "Central Plains") or "Zhongzhou" (literally means "central region"). It covers a total area of 167,000 square kilometers, with a permanent population of nearly 100 million. Henan is a populous, economic and agricultural powerhouse in China.
Complete Industrial System and Robust Foundation
Henan takes pride in its diverse industrial categories and full-fledged systems. The province has 41 divisions and 197 of 207 groups, which are distinguished by trillion-yuan-level industrial clusters involving new materials, advanced equipment, and modern food, and 100-billion-yuan-level industrial chains encompassing intelligent terminals and new energy vehicles. In 2024, Henan witnessed a GDP of 6.36 trillion yuan, rising by 5.1%, and the total retail sales of social consumer goods reached 2.76 trillion yuan, increasing by 6.1%, ranking second nationwide. The total value of imports and exports amounted to 820.2 billion yuan, ranking among the top ten nationwide. In the first half of 2025, Henan's GDP was 3.17 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.7%, 0.4 percentage points higher than the national level. The total retail sales of consumer goods were 1.42 trillion yuan, an increase of 7.2%, ranking fifth in scale and fourth in growth rate nationwide. Total imports and exports amounted to 412.53 billion yuan, an increase of 26.2% from last year, setting a new record for scale, with growth ranking fifth nationwide and second among major economic provinces.
Time-honored History and Profound Cultural Heritage
Henan is the vital birthplace of the Chinese nation and civilization, offering an immersive experience of China's history including the culture of the Spring and Autumn Period and the bricks and tiles made in the Qin and Han dynasties. In the long course of the 5000-year Chinese civilization, Henan was the political, economic, and cultural center for over 3000 years, with more than 20 dynasties having their capitals here. Four of the eight great ancient capitals in China, namely Luoyang, Kaifeng, Anyang, and Zhengzhou, are located in Henan. Moreover, the Four Great Inventions originated in Henan. There are five world heritage sites such as the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang and the Yin Ruins in Anyang. Honoring its past, Henan embraces the present. It is accelerating the development of the Yellow River, Grand Canal, Great Wall, and Long March National Cultural Park (Henan section) projects, creating a national corridor for the protection and utilization of major heritage sites. The province is also advancing the project tracing the origins of the Chinese civilization, the "Archaeology in China" program, and Xia-Shang Civilization Research Program, establishing a world-class cultural landmark for Yin Ruins Oracle Bone Scripts.
Superior Location and Developed Transportation
Henan is a vital transport hub that connects the east to the west and the south to the north, and has taken the lead in building a Union Jack-shaped high-speed railway network nationwide. Of the ten vertical and ten horizontal transport trunks, five ones pass through Henan. Zhengzhou is an important railway hub in China. Zhengzhou North Railway Station ranks among the busiest marshalling yards in Asia, and Zhengzhou East Railway Station is one of China's largest high-speed railway stations. In 2024, Zhengzhou Airport handled 28.5 million passengers and 825,000 tons of cargo and mail. Zhengzhou has been designated as a global international postal and express delivery hub and has built the first inland TIR assembly center. Henan's total length of expressways opened to traffic, spanning nearly 9,000 kilometers, has significantly enhanced connectivity. Notably, the three-hour railway economic circle covers 53% of the national population, while the two-hour aviation economic circle encompasses 87%.
“An Opening-up Hub with Coordinated "Air, Land, Online, and Maritime" Silk Roads
Henan boasts open platforms including three national first-class ports, nine functional ports, five comprehensive bonded zones, and four bonded logistics centers. It is accelerating its role in the construction of Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone, China (Henan) Pilot Free Trade Zone, and seven cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones. Henan has proactively advanced the construction of the "Air, Land, Online, and Maritime" Silk Roads, while Silk Road partnerships continues to deepen. With the high-level development of Zhengzhou–Luxembourg "Air Silk Road", dual hubs such as Zhengzhou-Kuala Lumpur and Zhengzhou-Mexico City have been steadily advanced. Zhengzhou Airport now offers 57 cargo routes, while more than 15,000 CR Express train trips have been operated. In 2024, cross-border e-commerce imports and exports totaled 266.55 billion yuan. Rail–sea intermodal transport and inland waterway shipping have opened new channels from the Central Plains.
Currently, Henan is thoroughly studying and implementing the spirit of President Xi Jinping's important speech during his inspection tour in the province, focusing on the primary task of high-quality development and the strategic task of building a new development pattern. Centered on "1+2+4+N" objectives and tasks, Henan will accelerate efforts to build a circulation hub for the national unified large market and create a pivotal point for the dual circulation of the domestic and international markets, steadfastly promote the coordinated development of the "Air, Land, Online, and Maritime" Silk Roads, and pursue high-level opening-up to write a new chapter on the Chinese path to modernization.
Introduction to Zhengzhou
——Embracing a renewed visage, establishing robust connections with the world
(Zhengzhou, China 2025)）
Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan Province, one of the eight ancient capitals in China, is located at the eastern foot of Mount Song and the shore of the Yellow River and in the hinterland of China, known as the "Center of Heaven and Earth" in history, the "capital of Shang Dynasty" in ancient times, and the "Green City" today. Zhengzhou, centered around its positioning as a national central city, a core demonstration area for ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin, and a core engine of the Zhengzhou Metropolitan Area, is striving to write a brilliant chapter of Chinese path to modernization in Central China. In 2024, Zhengzhou's GDP reached 1,453.21 billion yuan, with a growth rate of 5.7%, ranking at the forefront among cities with GDP exceeding 1 trillion yuan in China.
Advancing toward innovation with a robust and dynamic innovation engine
Surging source of innovation. Zhengzhou is accelerating the construction of a national innovation hub and a talent hub. It houses 6,000 high-tech enterprises, with an annual technology contract turnover of 80 billion yuan. There are 87 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering and 1.4 million university students in Zhengzhou (ranking second in China). In the past three years, 670,000 university students have stayed in Zhengzhou, becoming the 5th "youngest" city in China.
Strong foundation of science and technology innovation platforms. Zhongyuan Science and Technology City has risen to the 15th place nationwide. It has reorganized 14 national-level key laboratories and 18 provincial-level laboratories. The projects of research institutions of eight top universities, such as Harbin Institute of Technology and Beijing Institute of Technology, have been introduced and implemented. It has formed 13 industrial research institutions of leading enterprises and has built over 5,000 research and development platforms. These constitute a powerful scientific and technological innovation matrix for Zhengzhou.
Leading future industries. Zhengzhou City is focusing on building a city of new energy vehicles, computing power, diamonds, supercharging technology, and quantum technology under rapid construction. It proactively lays out 20 key industrial chains. After the completion of the national supercomputing internet core node project, Zhengzhou's computing power scale will rank first in China.
Strengthening the intelligent development to upgrade the industrial system
Simultaneously developed trillion-yuan-grade clusters. Zhengzhou's smartphone production exceeds 140 million units, accounting for about one-ninth of the world's total. It gathers seven complete vehicle companies such as SAIC and BYD and 15 special vehicle companies such as Yutong Heavy Industries. The complete vehicle production exceeds 2.6 million units. The two industrial clusters of electronic information and new energy vehicles are accelerating their growth towards the trillion-yuan-grade, and they hold a leading position in the global market.
Redefined benchmark of intelligent manufacturing. Zhengzhou boasts pillars of a great power such as Zhengzhou Coal Mining Machinery Group (mining machinery) and China Railway Engineering Equipment Group (tunnel boring machines - shield tunneling machines), as well as domestic trendy brands like Yutong Bus, SAIC Zhengzhou, and BYD. These elements, along with new industries represented by institutions like Sugon and xFusion, have redefined the benchmark of Chinese manufacturing.
Solid industrial foundation. The bus production of Zhengzhou accounts for one-eighth of the global total. The annual production of vehicles is 1.1 million units, ranking among the top ten in China. Complete vehicles have been exported to over 100 countries. The quick-frozen food yield accounts for more than 60% of the national market. The special-shaped shield tunneling machine technology of CREC Shield Tunneling holds a leading position in the world. A total of 36 mineral resources have been identified, with high-quality minerals and abundant reserves. The "Zhengzhou Price" from the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange impacts the global market. The manufacturing sector in Zhengzhou within the industrial and supply chains is becoming increasingly prominent.
Connecting the globe as a hub, making opening-up gateway wider
Multiple advantageous platforms. Zhengzhou Area of China (Henan) Pilot Free Trade Zone, Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone (China's first national airport economic zone), Zhengzhou-Luoyang-Xinxiang National Innovation Demonstration Zone, China (Zhengzhou) Cross-Border E-Commerce Comprehensive Pilot Zone, among other national-level strategic platforms, have gathered in Zhengzhou, injecting strong impetus into the process of opening-up and innovation.
Convenient and accessible transportation. Zhengzhou is the sole "double-crossroads" center of the ordinary railway network and the high-speed railway network nationwide and has taken the lead in building a Union Jack-shaped high-speed railway network. It is one of the 12 top-level integrated international transportation hubs in China and one of the six airport-type national logistics hubs. The two-hour high-speed railway economic circle facilitates the life and consumption of the country's 400 million population, while the two-hour aviation economic circle encompasses the country's more than 90% of population and market demands.
Conectividad y accesibilidad excepcionales. Zhengzhou es el único centro nacional de doble cruce ferroviario (convencional y de alta velocidad), pionero en construir una red de alta velocidad en forma de estrella de ocho puntas (“米”). Figura entre los 12 principales hubs de transporte internacional integral y los 6 hubs logísticos nacionales de tipo aeroportuario. Su círculo económico de 2 horas en tren bala cubre las necesidades de vida y consumo de 400 millones de personas, mientras su radio de acción aéreo de 2 horas abarca más del 90% de la población y mercados de China.
Multimodal air-land transport. Zhengzhou is a dual hub city of airport and land port in China. Xinzheng International Airport has opened 234 air routes and 49 all-cargo air routes, with a total of cargo and mail throughput amounting to 825,000 tons (top 40 in the world). The cargo and passenger route network has crossed Europe, Asia and America, covering world major economies. The CR Express (Zhengzhou) connects over 40 countries and more than 140 cities, becoming one of five major consolidation and distribution centers in China.
Complete port system. Distinguished by a "2+2+9" port system, Zhengzhou stands as an inland city in China with the largest number and most complete types of functional ports. The 240-hour visa-free transit policy.has greatly facilitated business travel worldwide, significantly accelerating the pace toward internationalization, and the number of foreign visitors entering Zhengzhou has soared.
Zhengzhou is firmly following the guidance of national strategies, accelerating the construction of the Zhengzhou Metropolitan Area, and striving to build a national central city with greater global influence, innovation leadership, industrial competitiveness, cultural influence and sense of happiness.
This ancient yet youthful city warmly welcomes global partners to jointly create a smart, green and prosperous future!
