The Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, or Chengdu-Chongqing, Chengyu, Chengyu Metropolitan Region ( zh, 成渝地区双城经济圈、成渝城市群、成渝经济区、成渝都市圈) is a Chinese national-level regional development strategy encompassing
Chengdu
Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...
,
Sichuan Province
Sichuan is a Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capita ...
and
Chongqing Municipality
Chongqing Previously romanized as Chungking ();. is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the Central People's Government, along with Beijing, Shanghai ...
in southwestern China. Designated by the
State Council State Council may refer to:
Government
* State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative authority of China, headed by the Premier
* State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of S ...
in 2021, it aims to transform the area into China's "fourth growth pole" alongside the
Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei
The Jing-Jin-Ji cluster is an expanded urban agglomeration consisting of Beijing (Jing), Tianjin (Jin), and Hebei (Ji). It is the biggest urban agglomeration region in North China, including an economic region surrounding the municipalities of Be ...
,
Yangtze River Delta
The Yangtze Delta or Yangtze River Delta (YRD), once known as the Shanghai Economic Zone, is a megalopolis generally comprising the Wu-speaking areas of Shanghai, southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang, southern Anhui. The area lies in the he ...
, and
Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area
The Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area, commonly referred to as the Greater Bay Area (GBA), is a megalopolis, consisting of nine cities and two special administrative regions in South China. It is envisioned by Chinese government pl ...
clusters.
Covering 185,000 km² with a population of 96 million, the initiative focuses on integrated infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, and technological innovation.
Economic Drivers
Key sectors include electronics (40% of China's laptop production), automotive (12% of national output), and biotechnology. Major projects include:
*
Chengdu-Chongqing High-Speed Railway
The Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, or Chengdu-Chongqing, Chengyu, Chengyu Metropolitan Region ( zh, 成渝地区双城经济圈、成渝城市群、成渝经济区、成渝都市圈) is a Chinese national-level regional development strategy e ...
(1h travel time between city centers, operational since 2025).
* Western (Chongqing) Science City, a $15 billion hub for AI and quantum computing.
* Twin-City Free Trade Zone enabling cross-border e-commerce with
ASEAN
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations,
commonly abbreviated as ASEAN, is a regional grouping of 10 states in Southeast Asia "that aims to promote economic and security cooperation among its ten members." Together, its member states r ...
.
In 2023, the region's GDP reached $1.6 trillion, accounting for 6.8% of China's total.
Challenges
Persistent disparities exist between urban cores and rural areas like
Bazhong
Bazhong () is a prefecture-level city in north-eastern Sichuan province, China. Its population was 2,712,894 at the 2020 census whom 1,064,766 lived in Bazhou and Enyang urban districts. As of the end of 2022, the resident population of Bazhong Ci ...
and
Wanzhou
Wanzhou District ( zh, s=万州区 , t=萬州區 , p=Wànzhōu Qū) is Chongqing's second most populated urban core area on the upper reaches of the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River in China. It is currently governed as a district of Chongqing M ...
, where per capita GDP remains 35% below Chengdu's average. Environmental concerns include air pollution (45% of days exceeding PM2.5 standards in 2022) and
Yangtze River
The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
tributary contamination.
Policy Innovations
A 2024 pilot program introduced cross-provincial GDP sharing for joint ventures and a unified carbon trading platform.
See also
*
Bohai Economic Rim
The Bohai Economic Rim (BER) or Bohai Bay Economic Rim (BBER) is the economic region surrounding Tianjin (Tientsin). It also includes areas in Hebei, Liaoning and Shandong surrounding the Bohai Sea. This region has undergone major economic and i ...
*
China Western Development
China Western Development () is an economic policy applied in Western China as part of the effort to reduce imbalances in development between China's coastal regions and its interior.
The policy covers six provinces (Gansu, Guizhou, Qinghai, Sh ...
*
National Central City
*
Pearl River Delta Economic Zone
The Pearl River Delta Economic Zone () is a special economic zone on the southeastern coast of China. Located in the Pearl River Delta, it consists of the Chinese cities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, an ...
*
Yangtze River Delta Economic Zone
The Yangtze Delta or Yangtze River Delta (YRD), once known as the Shanghai Economic Zone, is a megalopolis generally comprising the Wu-speaking areas of Shanghai, southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang, southern Anhui. The area lies in the he ...
*
West Triangle Economic Zone
The West Triangle Economic Zone is an economic zone designated by the Chinese government comprising Chengdu, Chongqing and Xi'an. Created as part of China's China Western Development, Western Development strategy, the West Triangle Economic Zone ...
References
{{Chongqing
Economy of Chengdu
Geography of Chengdu
Economy of Sichuan
Geography of Sichuan
Economy of Chongqing
Geography of Chongqing
Metropolitan areas of China