Yangtze Delta
Yangtze Delta
长江三角洲城市群 | |
|---|---|
Map of Yangtze Delta city belt | |
| Coordinates: 32°10′33″N 119°25′51″E / 32.1759°N 119.4307°E | |
| Provincial | |
| Major cities | Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Ningbo, Wuxi, Nantong, Shaoxing, Changzhou, Jinhua, Jiaxing, Taizhou, Yangzhou, Yancheng, Taizhou, Zhenjiang, Huzhou, Huai'an, Zhoushan, Quzhou, Jiujiang, Hefei |
| Government | |
| • Shanghai | Gong Zheng |
| • Jiangsu | Xu Kunlin |
| • Zhejiang | Wang Hao |
| • Anhui | Wang Qingxian |
| Area | |
• Total | 350,000 km2 (140,000 sq mi) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | c. 240,000,000 |
| • Density | 700/km2 (2,000/sq mi) |
| GDP | |
| • Total | CN¥33.170 trillion (US$4.657 trillion) (2024) |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (CST) |
| Yangtze Delta | |
|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 长江三角洲 |
| Traditional Chinese | 長江三角洲 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | ⓘ |
| Romanization | Zankaon Saekohtseu |
The Yangtze Delta or Yangtze River Delta (YRD), once known as the Shanghai Economic Zone, is a megalopolis generally comprising most part of Shanghai, southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang, southern Anhui. The area lies in the heart of the Jiangnan region (literally, "south of the Yangtze"), where the Yangtze drains into the East China Sea. Historically the fertile delta fed much of China’s population, and cities and commerce flourished. Today, it is one of China’s most important metropolitan areas and is home to China’s financial center, as well as a tourist destination and hub for manufacture ranging from textile to automaking. In 2024, the Yangtze Delta had a GDP of approximately US$4.7 trillion, about the same size as Germany.
The urban buildup in the area has given rise to what may be the largest concentration of adjacent metropolitan areas in the world. It covers 350,000 km2 (140,000 sq mi) and is home to over 240 million people. With about a sixth of China's population and a fourth of the country's GDP, the YRD is one of the fastest growing and richest regions in East Asia.