Qingdao Economic and Technological Development Zone

Qingdao Economic and Technological Development Zone, in Qingdao, east China's Shandong province, was among the first 14 national development zones approved by the State Council in October 1984.

After some 30 years, the zone has developed from a fishing village into one of the most vibrant metropolis spaces in Shandong province. Situated on the west bank of the Jiaozhou Bay, the zone is about 24 kilometers to the city's proper across the sea. The Zone accesses downtown Qingdao through the 66-kilometer expressway that runs around the Jiaozhou Bay and by means of sea routes, such as ferries and speedboats.

It is home to a population of about 800,000, of which over 150,000 are students from twelve universities, including China University of Petroleum and Shandong University of Science and Technology.

Its major industrial clusters include household electric appliances, building materials, petrochemicals, ship building and repairing, sea engineering, and port logistics. To date, the zone has attracted investors from some 60 countries and regions, and has signed 520 10-million-dollar projects, 75 of which came from the world's top 500 multinationals.

In 2017, the industrial output of enterprises above designated scale, those with annual sales of more than 5 million yuan ($744,371), totaled 370.1 billion yuan, an increase of 0.2 percent compared with the previous year. The zone reached a GDP of 215.5 billion yuan and an export-import volume of 129.8 billion yuan, up 10 and 6.9 percent respectively.