QINGDAO has made great achievements in all fields since it was established as a city on June 14 in 1891.

    With a permanent population of over 8.71 million, the city has seven districts and five county-level cities, covering a total area of 10,654 square kilometers.

    The city was selected as one of the central economic cities in 1981 and as one of the 14 coastal cities pursuing further opening-up in 1984.

    One of the 15 subprovincial cities in the country, Qingdao is the largest industrial city in Shandong Province and is known as a “capital of brands” for a cluster of leading enterprises like Haier and Tsingtao Beer.

    With a sound climate, the city has ocean and mountain scenery that has made it one of the first destinations for tourists in China.

    Annual income from tourism is more than 58 billion yuan. Some 45 million tourists from home and abroad visit the city each year.

    In addition, there is a variety of expositions each year like the Qingdao International Beer Festival.

    Known for an excellent natural harbor, Qingdao is an important international trading port in the Yellow River basin and the Pacific west coast. There are 97 international sea routes emanating from the city.

    The seventh-largest container port in the world, the city has an annual container throughput of 12 million TEU (20-foot equivalent units).

    There is also a developed airline industry with 95 domestic routes, 10 international routes and three routes to Hong Kong and Macao.

    The airport handles 11 million passengers a year.

    (Li Hao, Yu Feng)