[Natural Environment] Situated in central-north Shanxi, Xinzhou City is bounded by Taihang Mountains to the east, by the Yellow River to the west, by Taiyuan City, Yangquan City, and Lvliang City to the south, and by Shuozhou City and Datong City to the north. In fact, Xinzhou City is the only city in the province to stretch across Shanxi from east to west. The city is about 170 kilometers long from north to south and about 245 kilometers wide from east to west and has a total area of 25,150 square kilometers, about one sixth of the province’s total area, which makes it the largest city in the province; according to the random sampling-based census of 2018, the permanent resident population at year-end was 3,172,000, a year-on-year increase of 5,300; the city has under its jurisdiction 14 counties (including cities and municipal districts), 191 towns and townships (including offices), and 4,888 administrative villages.

The city has six traits:

First, it is an area that once was part of a revolutionary base. The city once was the heartland of the two major revolutionary bases of Jin-Cha-Ji and Jin-Sui as well as the hometown of many revolutionaries of the old generation, including Gao Junyu, Xu Fanting, Xu Xiangqian, and Bo Yibo. It was once a land of great revolutionary fervor. During the War of Chinese People’s Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the War of Liberation, the city contributed hundreds of thousands of soldiers, of whom 13,165 became revolutionary martyrs and 2,991 became cadres sent to the south, north, and west. In fact, the city’s people write a new chapter in Chinese revolutionary history.

Second, it is an underdeveloped area. The city is one of the 18 areas in China to see a large part of their land rated poverty-stricken; of its 14 counties (including cities and municipal districts), there are 11 counties designated by the state as counties to be given special attention in the national campaign to alleviate poverty, and 6 counties are located in extremely impoverished areas in Lvliang Mountains and Taihang Mountains; poverty affects a rather large portion of the city. In 2011, there were 770,000 persons living in rural areas with a net income of less than RMB 2,300, the latest criterion for inclusion as poverty-stricken persons; in 2014, there were poverty-stricken villages of 2,218 and a poverty-stricken population of 561,165.

Third, it is rich in natural resources. There is 6330.67 square kilometers of arable land within the city, of which 1328.67 square kilometers is irrigated; 6053.33 square kilometers of forest land; 6986.67 square kilometers of natural pasturage; 2000 square kilometers of artificial pasturage; over 200 plant species; 184 wildlife species; over 400 wild grasses; and over 300 wild medicinal herbs. The city is rich in natural mineral resources; there are over 50 minerals worthy of industrial exploitation. The proven coal reserves are 20.72 billion tons, with 20.01 billion of it being exploitable reserves; the proven iron reserves are 1.59 billion tons, with 1.502 billion of it being exploitable reserves; there are exploitable reserves of molybdenum, gold, alumina, rutile, kaolin, dolomite, and marble, with each type of reserve accounting for a fairly large percentage of the province’s total. There is 32.3 square kilometers of geothermal fields.

Four, it is a large area of cultural and historical significance. The city has a long history and is steeped in culture. The city has 20 and 47 national key cultural relics protection units operating at national and provincial levels respectively as well as 2,466 cultural relics and collector’s items rated as being level-3 items or above; there are 11 national intangible cultural heritage sites and 26 provincial intangible cultural heritage sites. There are many historical figures, including the Generals of Yang Family, Yuan Haowen, Bai Pu, Xu Jishe, and Yan Xishan. The city has long been acclaimed as the land of wrestling and as the sea of folk songs; Yan Opera, Errentai, and Nao Yang Wrestling are all its traditional cultural activities. The city’s Buddhist culture takes up an important position in the world. There are distinctive regional features in the city’s frontier culture, marked by ancient warfare; Yanmen Pass, Ningwu Pass, and Piantou Pass serve as clear proof of this culture, and are places where in ancient times the Han people warred against and communicated and mixed with ethnic minorities in northern China for long.

Five, it has great potential for tourism development. There are 97 scenic areas and spots. There are 3 national forest parks, namely Wutai Mountain Scenic Area, Yuwangdong National Forest Park, and Zhaogaoguan National Forest Park, and 3 provincial forest parks, namely Wufengshan Provincial Forest Park, Lanyi Provincial Forest Park, and Mayinghai Provincial Forest Park. Luya Mountain is a national nature reserve with 547 square kilometers of primitive forests. Luya Mountain, together with Wutai Mountain Scenic Area, Yanmen Pass Relic Area in Dai County, Xinfu Yuanping Hot Spring Leisure Resort, and the Yellow River Tourism Area in Hequ, Baode, and Pianguan Counties, is collectively referred to the five characteristic tourism areas of Xinzhou City. Wutai Mountain is a national 5A scenic area; at the 33 session of the World Heritage Committee, Wutai Mountain was included as a World Heritage Site in the “World Heritage List” by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. Hebian Village Folk Custom Museum is a National 4A Level Scenic Spot and a National Level-2 Museum.

Six, it is a new development zone. Since it became a prefectural-level city in 2001, the city, led by all its municipal Party committees and municipal governments over the years, has intensified its effort to alleviate poverty and bring prosperity to its people, thereby speeding up its economic and social development. The city’s wind power ranks first in the province; the Aluminum Plant of Aluminum Corporation of China Limited in Yuanping City is one of China’s eight major aluminum production bases and ranks first when it comes to production and exports of flanges. Nicknamed “the capital of grain,” the city is rated an excellent city in safe production, complaint handling, and comprehensive management, an environmental protection model city, a double support model city of China for six consecutive years, and the city in China to create the largest number of sanitary and healthy towns. In the province’s annual target responsibility appraisal for the years of 2012 and 2013, the city ranked second and fourth respectively.

[Economic Development and Others] According to preliminary estimates, the city’s gross production output reached RMB 98.91 billion, a year-on-year increase of 5.0% based on equivalent prices. Specifically, the primary sector of industry added a gross value of RMB 6.96 billion, a year-on-year increase of 2.9% and accounting for 7.1% of the total; the secondary sector of industry added a gross value of RMB 47.71 billion, a year-on-year drop of 2.7% and accounting for 48.2% of the total; and the tertiary sector of industry added a gross value of RMB 44.24 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7.6% and accounting for 44.7% of the total.
 
The per capita regional gross production output was RMB 31209, or USD 4714 according to the average exchange rate of 2018.

The general public budget revenues reached RMB 8.15 billion, a year-on-year increase of 11.2%. The city’s tax revenues were RMB 5.45 billion, a year-on-year increase of 17.4. Specifically, such taxes as the domestic value-added tax, business tax, corporate income tax, personal income tax, resource tax, and municipal maintenance and construction tax generated revenues of RMB 4.52 billion, a year-on-year increase of 20.0%.

The city grew crops in 446,000 hectares of land, a year-on-year drop of 9,300 hectares. Specifically, 402,100 hectares were set aside for grain crops, a year-on-year drop of 5,900 hectares; 16,100 hectares were set aside for vegetables, a year-on-year drop of 1,200 hectares; 16,700 hectares were set aside for oil crops, a year-on-year drop of 2,800 hectares. Of the land used for growing grain crops, 216,700 hectares were set aside for corn, a year-on-year increase of 7,400 hectares; 400 hectares were set aside for wheat, a year-on-year drop of 100 hectares. There were 16,900 hectares set aside for orchards, a year-on-year drop of 300 hectares.

The value added by the city’s industrial businesses operating on a specified scale or above dropped by 1.5%, with the coal industry’s addition dropping by 1.4% and that of all other industries increasing by 4.3%. Among industrial businesses operating on a specified scale or above, the value added by emerging industries of strategic importance increased by 16.0%, accounting for 7.1% of the value added by the city’s industrial businesses operating on a specified scale or above. Specifically, the energy conservation and environmental protection industry increased by 9.2%; the high-end equipment manufacturing industry increased by 11.6%; the new materials industry increased by 49.7%; the new energy industry increased by 6.5%; the biological industry dropped by 40.7%.

The city used 49.953 million tons of standard coal as a primary source of energy, a year-on-year drop of 5.5%; it used 27.073 million tons of standard coal as a secondary source of energy, a year-on-year increase of 27.7%.

The city invested a total of RMB 49.31 billion in fixed assets (excluding other urban and rural families), a year-on-year increase of 9.6%.

The city retailed RMB 39.02 billion’s worth of consumer goods, a year-on-year increase of 8.2%. According to the type of place of transaction, RMB 27.12 billion’s worth of consumer goods were sold in the urban areas, a year-on-year increase of 7.9%, and RMB 11.89 billion’s worth of consumer goods were sold in the rural areas, a year-on-year increase of 8.8%. According to the mode of consumption, RMB 33.39 billion’s worth of commodities were sold, a year-on-year increase of 6.9%, and catering businesses generated RMB 5.63 billion, a year-on-year increase of 16.2%.

RMB 1.72572 billion’s worth of imports and exports passed through the city’s customs, a year-on-year increase of 24.2%. Specifically, there were RMB 145.17 million’s worth of imports, a year-on-year increase of 210.4%; there were RMB 1.58055 billion’s worth of exports, a year-on-year increase of 17.7%.

At the end of 2018, the city had 17,570 kilometers of roads, including 891 kilometers of expressways.

All the deposits made in the domestic currency of RMB and in all foreign currencies at the city’s financial institutions totaled RMB 213.73 billion at year-end, an increase of RMB 17.36 billion over the figure at the beginning of the year, or an increase of 8.8%. The balance of the loans of all types totaled RMB 91.89 billion at year-end, an increase of RMB 9.25 billion over the figure at the beginning of the year, or an increase of 11.2%.

At year-end within the city there were 442 kindergartens, 433 primary schools, 199 secondary schools, 36 high schools, 33 vocational schools, and 2 colleges. The education sector saw 90% of the city’s children of kindergarten age go to kindergarten, 99.9% of its children of primary school age go to primary school, and 94% of its children of high school age go to high school.