The Wuhan Economic & Technological Development Zone (WHDZ) -- located in Wuhan, capital city of Central China's Hubei province -- will continue to make great strides in boosting the development of its automobile industry, according to local media reports.
Automobile manufacturing is one of the pillar industries in Wuhan. In 2010, the output value of the sector exceeded 100 billion yuan ($14.4 billion) for the first time, surpassing the city's steel industry to become its biggest industry. In the following nine years, it has also been ranked number one.
Last year, automobile production in Wuhan reached 1.55 million vehicles, one of the highest levels in China.
Officials said the city is making great inroads in the new wave of competition in the world's automobile industry, as represented by new energy vehicles.
They said the WHDZ was built and it prospered because of automobiles. After 29 years of development, it has grown into a major center for automobiles, ranking first among the national development zones in Central and West China.
The WHDZ is where the headquarters of Dongfeng Motor Co is located. It is home to seven automakers and 500 auto parts companies with an annual output value of more than 340 billion yuan.
With the zone's achievements in the auto industry, the 12th China Automotive Bluebook Forum, a top domestic automotive industry forum, was held on Aug 11-13 -- inviting some 200 entrepreneurs, experts and academics to exchange views on 23 topics in six major sectors: electrification, intelligence, digitalization, large designs, operations and marketing.
Officials said the development zone is now making great efforts in developing its modern service industries – including next-generation automobiles, robots, new energy and new materials and 5G communications.
