City Introduction of Shanxi, China: Luliang

Source: Luliang Economic and Social Development Report 2007

 

Luliang is seated in the middle-western part of Shanxi Province, at the middle reaches of the Yellow River. It adjoins Jinzhong and the provincial capital city Taiyuan to the east, Linfen to the south, and Xinzhou to the north, and faces Shaanxi Province across the Yellow River. The city administrates 2 county-level cities, 10 counties and 1 district, with total population hitting 3.6 million and total area amounting to 21,095 sq km. It has a dry continental climate, with four distinct seasons.

 

The city has a comprehensive highway and railway network. The Xiajiaying-Fenyang Highway, the Fenyang-Liulin Highway, the Taiyuan-Zhongwei Railway, the Datong-Puzhou Railway and the Xiaoyi-Liulin Railway go through the city, connecting the city with most domestic cities in China. The construction of Luliang Airport, located 20.5 km from the city’s downtown area, started in Feb. 2009 and is scheduled for completion in 2011.

 

The city is rich in mineral resources such as coal, iron and aluminum. It has proven coal reserves of 40.4 billion tons and proven iron ore reserves of 987 million tons, accounting for 6.2% and 29.4% of Shanxi's total proven coal and iron reserves, respectively. It also has many wild animals, such as deer and leopards.

 

 

In 2007, the city's GDP rose 16% from a year earlier to RMB 50 billion, ranking fifth in Shanxi Province. The value-added output from primary industry, secondary industry and tertiary industry reached RMB 2.6 billion, RMB 34.3 billion and RMB 13.1 billion, comprising 5.1%, 68.8% and 25.1% of the city's GDP, respectively.

 

Heavy industry dominates the city's industrial sector. In 2007, the value-added industrial output from the enterprises with designated size and above totaled RMB 25.1 billion, with a rise of 25.0% year on year. Heavy industry and light industry generated RMB 23.3 billion and RMB 1.8 billion in value-added industrial output, accounting for 92.8% and 7.2% of the city's total.

 

Coal mining and dressing, metallurgy, raw chemicals and chemical products, construction materials, electricity production and supply, and liquor are the pillar industries in Luliang. In 2007, the city produced 61.9 million tons of coal, 3.8 million tons of pig iron and 6 million liters of distilled liquor, accounting for 10.8%, 11.1% and 67.6% of Shanxi's total output, respectively.

 

Shanxi Xinghua Cun Fen Chiew Group<600809>, Shanxi Huaxin Coal Tar Industrial Group and Shanxi Liulin Coal Mining Group are the leading industrial enterprises in the city. Xinghua Cun Fen Chiew is situated in Xinghua Cun Village, one of the birthplaces of Chinese distilled liquor. Fen Chiew is a kind of fragrant distilled liquor with a long history of 1,500 years. Shanxi Xinghua Cun Fen Chiew was set up in 1949 and was listed in 1993 on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. Its major products are liquors carrying the brands "Fen" and "Zhu Ye Qing". The net profit of the company was nearly RMB 360 million in 2007.

 

The service sector also saw a healthy growth in 2007. With 5 nature reserves, and 4 state-level forest parks, the city attracted over 362 million domestic tourists in 2007, with the tourism income rising 12.5% to RMB 2.3 billion. Meanwhile, over 16,700 foreign tourists visited the city, generating US$5.37 million in revenue.

 

Foreign trade in Luliang grew 40.8% from a year earlier to US$675.4 million, comprising export value of US$620.1 million and import value of US$55.3 million. The major export products from the city are base metal products and coal. Japan, the U.S., the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Australia and Russia are the largest foreign trade partners of the city.

 

The utilized FDI in the city was US$219.7 million in 2007, representing an increment of 9.8% compared with the same period a year ago.

 

 

Luliang enjoys a long history. As early as the Spring-and-Autumn Period, Qu County, Ping Ling County and Zhongyang County were set up in this territory. In BC 376, it became part of Zhao State. In BC 246, Taiyuan Capital was set up and the region was under the administration of Taiyuan Capital.

 

In 2003, Luliang was approved to be a prefecture-level city by the State Council. Luliang is famous for Chinese wine and Chinese wine culture, as Fen Chiew originated from there. During the Chinese civil war, the region became a revolutionary base for Chairman Mao, Liu Shaoqi, Zhou Enlai and Deng Xiaoping.

 

 

Luliang has abundant tourism resources, such as Xinghua Village, Tianning Temple, Phoenix Mountain Taoist Temple, North Wudang Mountain, Ancient Qikou Town and Dawu Wooden Attic. Xinhua Village is famous for Fen Chiew. It was the wine center in Shanxi during the Tang Dynasty. Fen Chiew was praised by many poets and scholars, such as Li Bai and Du Mu, who are famous poets from the Tang Dynasty. Tianning Temple was first built in AD 632 during the Tang Dynasty. A large number of steles of the Tang Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty are preserved in the Temple. The North Wudang Mountain is also called Zhenwu Mountain or Longwang Mountai. It consists of 72 peaks, 36 cliffs and 24 streams. It is well-known for its beautiful and splendid scenery.

 

The most featured local dishes in Luliang are Corn Powder Pancake, Luliang Noodle and You Zha Hui (a kind of fried flour food).