Shanghai's 25-year economic story has been exhilarating. We have chronicled it

In 2010, then Shanghai Daily reporter Feng Jianmin wrote an article about a small wonton eatery on Weihai Road near Nanjing Road W and the newspaper office, describing that area of Nanjing Road as "rather ordinary, with small shops and low-rise residential buildings, separated by lanes."

She wrote, "Along the road, retailers sell basic foodstuffs, clothing and household utensils. A shop owner Cai Xinmin makes batches of fresh wontons early every morning, calling it a day when all the wontons are sold, usually before 10am."

Nanjing Road today bears scant resemblance to the 14-year-old description. It's now a luxury retail area and a hot spot for tourists. But the little wonton shop still stands. Cai, now 66, continues to sell his specialty to queues of people waiting outside, although the price of a small bowl of wontons has tripled to keep pace with rising commodity prices.

The wonton shop and Shanghai Daily staff who sometimes pop over to buy breakfast have all borne witness to the sweeping changes that have transformed the economy and the lives of all who live here.

Shanghai Daily celebrates its 25th anniversary this year on National Day, October 1. One of the greatest achievements of the pioneering English-language newspaper in the last quarter century has been its role as a meticulous chronicler of the city's economic progress.

Shanghai has stepped boldly onto the world stage in it goal to become the embodiment of advanced technologies like artificial intelligence and a showcase for world-class communications, manufacturing, health care, culture and an eco-friendly lifestyle.

Gross domestic product, a measure of the city's total goods and services, soared 12-fold between 1999 and 2023, the latest full-year figure available.

That rapid progress has been built on an influx of foreign investment and businesses, on government policies opening the door wider to world trade and on the creative entrepreneurship of its residents.

Economic progress has ushered in dramatic changes in Shanghai's lifestyle. The per-capita disposable income of city residents in the last 25 years surged seven-fold to 84,834 yuan (US$12,000), according to city figures. People not only have more money to spend but more ways to spend it.

The city's streets are now filled with electric vehicles as part of going-green initiatives. Residents use digital alternatives in a growing cash-free society. Glitzy shopping malls offer goods from around the world, including top luxury brands.

New museums showcase history and modern art. A new opera house under construction will add a venue to the city's vibrant performing arts landscape. A new planetarium is the world's largest.

Old tenement housing where people lived in cramped, impoverished environments has been replaced by modern apartments with bathrooms and kitchens that people don't have to share with other families. Bike lanes, jogging tracks and park playgrounds abound amid policies to encourage a healthier lifestyle. Care for the growing elderly population has been expanded and made more accessible.

Shanghai Daily has been there to trace every step along the way to a better economic future.

So how did it all this change come about?

"From 1992 to 2001, foreign investment was large and fast in China," said Sun Lixing, director of the International Investment Research Office at the Institute of World Economy in the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences.

Companies funded by overseas money comprise about two-thirds of the city's import and export trade, one third of its tax revenue and a fifth of its employment,

At the end of 2001, China joined the World Trade Organization amid efforts to open its market wider to the world, becoming the top global exporter.

At the same time, China's foreign-exchange reserves have grown from about US$10 billion in 1990 to rank first in the world at US$1 trillion.

In 2002, Shanghai was the first city on the Chinese mainland to introduce incentives for multinational corporations to set up regional headquarters. According to the Shanghai Commission of Commerce, some 985 multinationals had headquarters in the city as of the end of June, and foreign-funded research and development centers totaled 575.

In the first half of this year alone, about 3,000 foreign-funded companies set up shop in the city, increasing 18 percent from a year earlier.

Shanghai Daily's chronicle of the city's economic transformation is mirrored in its in-depth coverage of development of Pudong on the east side of the Huangpu River. Once paddy fields, the area now boasts the city's most iconic skyline, with distinctive architectural skyscrapers and the famed Oriental Pearl Tower.

Pudong has become the symbol of Shanghai's emergence on the world stage. Its Lujiazui district is often called "the Wall Street of China."

"Developing Pudong was a matter of strategic importance for Shanghai and the whole country," said then Premier Li Peng in 1990.

Among the bold initiatives was the establishment of the China (Shanghai) Free Trade Zone in 2013. It loosened regulations on foreign trade in the city, attracted a new wave of investment and served as a blueprint for similar zones across China.

"It became the benchmark for world-standard economic and trade rules," said Zhou Hanmin, a member of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. "It was a pioneer in an innovative approach to freer, more open trading."

The zone has been expanding in size. A recent addition in 2019 was Lingang, an area in southern Pudong that is the gateway to Shanghai's biggest port facility. Incentive policies there have attracted more than 3,000 foreign-funded companies. Among the highest profile is Tesla, which built a factory that is China's first wholly owned, foreign-funded vehicle manufacturing facility and Tesla's largest factory outside of its US home base.

While growing leaps and bounds in industrial terms, Shanghai has been careful to marry that progress with an improvement in its business environment. In 2020, the city adopted a foreign-investment law that tackled issues such as intellectual property-rights disputes.

In that year, the World Intellectual Property Organization Arbitration and Mediation Center opened in Lingang after Shanghai led the nation by opening the door to international arbitration businesses.

At the same time, the city continues to solicit the advice of foreign businessmen. The annual meetings of the mayor's advisory council of top world business leaders have helped the city development a viable blueprint in its goal toward becoming a major global center on par with New York and London.

International Investment Research Office's Sun Lixing pointed out that the infusion of foreign capital, technology and management models has enriched the city's talent base, among other notable benefits.

Addressing the current slowdown in foreign investment, he added, "I think it shows that China has changed from focusing on the number and scale of foreign investment to focusing on the efficiency and quality of investment. With the rising cost of doing business, the nature of investment that comes to China has also changed to reflect different development strategies."

Sun praised Shanghai Daily for its role in communicating the city's message to the world.

"A favorable business environment requires openness and transparency of information and policies," he said.

As Shanghai has expanded to embrace the digital revolution, so has the newspaper.

In addition to its online Shine news portal, Shanghai Daily launched the online City News Service in 2022 to provide practical information for expatriates living in the city. It is also developing a new website catering to foreign businesses in Shanghai.

As for Feng Jianming's lowly wonton shop owner, he too welcomes the changes in the city.

"I'm so glad to see Shanghai's economic development since its reforms and opening up policies," Cai said.