Equipped with a complete industrial chain, the prosperous port province of Jiangsu is one of the key provinces in Mainland China for the manufacturing and sale of lighting products

Jiangsu Province is located on the east coast of Mainland China with Nanjing as its capital and the Yangtze River and Huai River running through. Also known as “Su”, the province is situated close to the sea, which fosters a trade-oriented economy that has helped the region prosper. It has the Yellow Sea to its east and borders Shanghai and the provinces of Zhejiang, Anhui and Shandong. Jiangsu is one of the birthplaces of ancient Chinese civilisation and a multitude of cultures are well-respected.

A land of water

With numerous lakes and rivers and adjacency to the sea, Jiangsu has a dense water network as 16.9 per cent of its total area is covered by water. It is the only province in the country to have access to long and large rivers, lakes and seas. The province has more than 20,000 waterways that are above the township level, 723 of which are listed as its main waterways. Jiangsu has 12 lakes, each with an area of more than 50 square kilometres. Taihu Lake and Hongze Lake are over 1,000 square kilometres and are the third- and fourth-largest freshwater lakes in the country, respectively.

Abundant natural resources

Jiangsu occupies a land area of 107,200 square kilometres, accounting for 1.12 per cent of the country. The province has 13 prefecture-level cities, 95 counties (including cities and districts) and 720 towns. As of the end of 2020, it registered a permanent population of 84.74 million.

Located in the north–south climate transition zone, Jiangsu is blessed with favourable conditions for agriculture, earning itself the title of “a land of fish and rice”. Currently, it has nine national ecological garden cities, 22 demonstration cities and counties for the development of ecological civilisation, and four innovation bases for the implementation of ecological civilisation. More than 95 per cent of urban parks in the province are free for the public to visit.

Famous historical figures and literary masterpieces aplenty

Since the Tang and Song dynasties, many politicians, scholars and professionals have hailed from Jiangsu. Numerous classic Chinese literary works have been written in Jiangsu by literati and writers from past dynasties, including The Art of War by Sun Tzu, Water Margin by Shi Nai’an, Journey to the West by Wu Chengen, San Yan by Feng Menglong and Dream of the Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin.

Profound heritage and culture

Jiangsu has fertile land, abundant produce and numerous local specialties. It has several world cultural heritages, including Suzhou Gardens, the Ming Xiaoling (the mausoleum of the Hongwu Emperor, founder of the Ming dynasty) and the Grand Chinese Canal. It also has a number of world intangible cultural heritages, including Kunqu (a form of Chinese opera), Guqin (a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument), engraving, papercutting and Yunjin (a traditional Chinese luxury silk brocade), as well as national intangible cultural heritages, including Suzhou embroidery, mud carving, jade carving and Xuzhou sachets. Nanjing salted duck, Suzhou Biluochun (green tea), Zhenjiang fragrant vinegar and other local food showcase Jiangsu’s strong cultural offerings.

Major port province

Jiangsu has 10 ports in the coastal areas along the Yangtze River and Yellow Sea. The province ranks first in the country in port cargo throughput, the number of berths with 10,000-plus tons each and the number of ports with a capacity of 100 million tons each. There are 17 first-class ports in Jiangsu that have direct trade connection with ports in more than 100 countries and regions. It has 5,684 port berths with production capability, 524 berths above 10,000 tons and a comprehensive annual port throughput capacity of 2.29 billion tons.

An open economy

In 2020, Jiangsu’s open economy showed signs of stability and improvement in quality. The province achieved remarkable results in stabilising foreign trade and investment, with the total import and export volume recording a 2.6-per-cent year-on-year increase to reach RMB4,450bn. A total of 3,575 foreign-invested enterprises received the approval of operation, an increase of 4.8 per cent over the previous year. The actual utilised foreign capital registered US$28.38bn to rank first in the country. A total of 696 outward investment projects were newly approved. Mainland China’s contracted foreign investment reached US$5.74bn.

Jiangsu has accelerated the “crossroad” construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, with 247 new foreign investment projects in operation along the routes. The province has continued to deepen its co-operation in production with other countries and regions. The construction of the Demonstration Park of the China–Arab (UAE) Co-operation on Production Capacity and Cambodia’s Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone has made steady progress, while the China–Kazakhstan (Lianyungang) Logistics Co-operation Base, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Lianyungang International Logistics Park and the construction of the Huaihai International Land Port have all produced significant achievements.

Competitive edge of the lighting industry

Equipped with a complete industrial chain, Jiangsu is a leading province for manufacturing and sale of lighting products in the country. Its lighting industry has advantages in industrial development and technology. The province focuses on cultivating the subindustries, resulting in the establishment of a number of well-known manufacturing and sales bases in the country.

Jiangsu’s lighting industry also focuses on hi-tech developments that meets the country’s needs. With many higher education and scientific research institutes in the province, a vast talent pool and co-operation between the industry, academia and research institutions, the Jiangsu lighting industry has strong support for advancement.

In recent years, the development of the lighting industry has been of great importance to Jiangsu. The province has taken a market-driven approach, promoting product advancement through applications, strengthening various measures, helping leading enterprises further develop and expand, and encouraging industrial transformation and upgrade.

As 5G technology and Internet of Things continue to mature, Jiangsu Province is actively driving the integration of the lighting industry and the Internet, as well as promoting the R&D and industrialisation of smart lighting. The province is also supporting the construction of smart cities, smart communities and smart homes, and increasing the added value of its lighting products. In addition, it is improving the quality of its urban night lighting and promoting smart green lighting, while rapidly providing lighting for its scenic and cultural spots.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Mainland China is one of a few major economies that has successfully contained it. As a result, its factories and businesses could resume production and operation earlier than the rest of the world. In 2020, the country’s GDP grew by 2.3 per cent to exceed RMB100trn. Jiangsu’s lighting industry is highly competitive and its status as a global lighting manufacturing centre and a supply chain hub will remain unchallenged in the short term. The concepts of applied designs, smart and healthy living have given the lighting industry more added values and space for imagination. The prospects for Mainland China’s lighting industry look bright and promising.

Today, Mainland China’s lighting industry is full of opportunities as well as challenges. Landscape lighting, smart lighting and cultural tourism lighting are the driving forces behind innovation by enterprises as lighting companies contribute in driving a city’s economic development and promoting urban tourism and consumption. As the nation and its economic development have entered a new era, urbanisation is accelerating to satisfy people’s yearning for a happy and better life and their demand for healthy and high-quality products.

In the future, Jiangsu’s lighting industry must closely follow technological development, accelerate its transformation and upgrade, seize business opportunities, expand into new markets and strengthen its collaboration and integration with other industries. All this will help create industrial clusters that have distinctive features and nurture lighting enterprises in scaling up and becoming world-famous.

The Jiangsu lighting industry has an industrial output value and technical level that lead the country. It is a major province for lighting manufacturing, with many production bases as well as sales centres established in its various cities and counties, including the following three:

• Chinese Street Lamp Manufacturing Base in Gaoyou of Yangzhou City
• Chinese Manufacturing Base for Energy-saving Light Sources, Jianhu County of Yancheng City
• China Lighting City, Zouqu Town in the Zhonglou District of Changzhou City