China Daily - 30.07.2019

PAGE TWO

2 | Tuesday, July 30, 2019 CHINA DAILY

Cities: Preferential policies offered

hesitation in agreeing to move.”

Weng, who now earns 200,

yuan (about $30,000) a year, said

her new lifestyle is a great improve-

ment to that she led in Beijing.

“When I was in Beijing, although I

was not on a low salary, I still had to

live very frugally, as my expenses,

especially rent, were very high,” she

said, adding that as a photography

fan she had to delay buying a good

camera, which cost thousands of

yuan, in order to save money.

Things changed greatly after she

moved to Wuhan. She has bought a

good camera, and now feels more free

and relaxed about spending money.

“My rent now is 1,000 yuan a month,

only one-third of that in Beijing,”

Weng said. “With a higher salary and

lower expenses, I’m confident I can

maintain a comfortable lifestyle.”

Weng’s boyfriend, who is a mas-

ter’s student in Beijing, also plans to

work in Wuhan, and the couple aims

to buy a home and settle in the city.

“The price of housing — about

20,000 yuan per square meter — is

within reach and it’s relatively easy

for college graduates to gain perma-

nent residence in Wuhan,” Weng

said.

The ability of graduates to move

to new first-tier cities is not only

benefiting these young people, but

also the destinations, and even the

entire country.

Ma Yan, deputy director of the

MyCOS Research Institute, said

graduates are precious human

resources that enable cities to thrive

and remain vigorous, adding that

the arrival of young talent will accel-

erate the upgrading and transfor-

mation of industries in these

emerging cities.

“Meanwhile, compared with first-

tier cities, which are all in East or

South China, new first-tier ones are

scattered throughout the country.

Their development will drive local

economies and help rectify the

imbalance among different parts of

the country,” she said.

Closing the gaps

However, gaps still exist between

first-tier and new first-tier cities.

After living in Wuhan for a time,

Weng found the city lagged behind a

first-tier metropolis in several

respects, such as education, health-

care, transportation and entertain-

ment. Environmental conditions in

Wuhan also need to be improved,

she said.

“For example, a lot of construction

is taking place in the city, affecting the

environment and traffic flow. In addi-

tion, when it comes to entertainment,

I either find there is not enough

choice, or that the facilities are not

advanced enough,” she added.

Fu, who moved to Zhengzhou,

believes such shortcomings are only

temporary. As new first-tier cities

“chase after” the first-tier ones, gaps

between the two are narrowing.

“New first-tier cities such as

Zhengzhou are developing rapidly

and creating more opportunities for

young people than overpopulated

first-tier ones. If young people can

seize the opportunities, they will be

able to lead good lives and have

bright futures more easily than in

first-tier cities,” said Fu, who has

returned to university to pursue a

master’s in translation.

She said an airport economic

zone and a pilot free trade zone are

being constructed in Zhengzhou,

and these will need plenty of talent-

ed professionals with language

skills. “I believe there are great

opportunities and good lives wait-

ing for us,” she added.

cal benefits that new first-tier cit-

ies can offer college graduates

who choose them for work, and

these benefits all add to the cities’

ability to attract young talent.”

A recent report by job-hunting

company Zhipin said that among

new first-tier cities, Wuhan,

The term “new first-tier cities”
was first coined by the Chinese
media six years ago, through rating
cities on the basis of five factors:
richness of commercial resources;
convenience of intercity transporta-
tion; the active lives of the urban
population; the diversity of lifes-
tyles; and development potential.
Using these factors, 15 centers have
been recognized as new first-tier cities.
Along with Zhengzhou, they include:
Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province;
Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang;
Wuhan, the Hubei provincial capital,
Shenyang, capital of Liaoning, and
Kunming, capital of Yunnan.
Ding Changfa, an associate profes-
sor of economics at Xiamen Universi-
ty in Fujian province, said the
emergence of these cities stems from
attempts by first-tier metropolises to
resolve the “metropolitan malaise”.
To ease overpopulation, conges-
tion and pollution, the four first-tier
cities have set targets to guide the
outflow of people and industries.
New first-tier cities, most of them
provincial capitals or regional cen-
ters, are taking over some functions
of the “big four” by becoming homes
to professional talent and indus-
tries, Ding said.
Liu Yuanju, a researcher with the
Shanghai Institute of Finance and
Law, said that as property prices in
first-tier cities have soared in recent
years, it has become increasingly
difficult for young people to buy
homes.
“In the meantime, household reg-
istration policies (hukou) in the four
cities are becoming unprecedented-
ly strict, and only a very few college
graduates are able to gain perma-
nent residence permits and settle
down. Against such a backdrop,
some young people are looking else-
where,” he added.
In recent years, researchers have
found the ability of new first-tier cit-
ies to attract talent, particularly
young college graduates, has clearly
increased, overtaking the “pulling
power” of first-tier destinations.
Last month, a survey conducted by
Xinhuanet and Ziroom, an online
apartment rental platform, showed
that the number of people renting
homes in new first-tier cities such as
Tianjin, Hangzhou, Chengdu,
Wuhan, Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu
province, and Xi’an, capital of
Shaanxi province, increased last year
at a faster pace than in first-tier cities.

Graduates’ choice
Latest statistics from MyCOS, a
Beijing provider of data survey and
analytical consulting services in
higher education, show the propor-
tion of college graduates choosing to
work in new first-tier cities rose
from 22 percent in 2014 to 26 per-
cent last year.
The proportion of those opting to
work in first-tier cities during the
same period dropped from 25 per-
cent to 21 percent.
In May, a report on college gradu-
ate employment by the recruitment
website Zhaopin showed that 44
percent of the graduates surveyed
hope to work in new first-tier cities,
4 percentage points up from last
year. Some 31 percent hope to work
in first-tier cities.
The report said industries in new
first-tier cities are developing rapid-
ly and there is a greater need for tal-
ent. To attract this, the cities have
implemented a series of preferential
policies, such as lowering the
threshold for gaining a permanent

From page 1

Inducements spur increase in permanent-resident populations

By ZHAO XINYING

The number of permanent resi-
dents in some new first-tier cities is
increasing, according to statistics
departments in these destinations.
Last year, the number of perma-
nent residents in Chengdu, capital
of Sichuan province, rose by
290,000 from 2017. In Hangzhou,
capital of Zhejiang province, the fig-
ure rose by 340,000 year-on-year,
and in Changsha, capital of Hunan
province, by 240,000.
Liu Yuanju, a researcher with the
Shanghai Institute of Finance and
Law, said a series of favorable poli-
cies for college graduates imple-
mented by governments in new

first-tier cities have contributed to

these population rises.

Since 2017, many of these cities

have introduced policies covering

household registration, home pur-

chases and entrepreneurship.

In cities such as Xi’an, capital of

Shaanxi province, college graduates

can gain permanent residence

directly, without meeting any addi-

tional thresholds. Wuhan, capital of

Hubei province, is among the cities

that are building apartments for

rent to young professionals for just a

few hundred yuan a month. Nan-

jing, capital of Jiangsu province, has

issued stipends to college graduates

who start their own businesses.

Liu said, “These are the practi-

Hangzhou, Chengdu, Zhengzhou,

capital of Henan province, and

Xi’an, the Shaanxi provincial capi-

tal, were the most attractive for tal-

ent, with 36 percent of people

leaving first-tier cities to seek jobs

choosing to move to these five desti-

nations.

The report added that the propor-

tion of people ages 18 to 35 looking

to first-tier cities as their top choice

for work dropped from 66 percent

in 2015 to 47 percent in 2017. Mean-

while, the proportion of such people

choosing new first-tier cities rose

sharply.

According to a report early this

month by online recruitment com-

pany Zhaopin, in new first-tier cit-

ies, the proportion of enterprises

with employees with average ages of

21 to 35 was higher than the same

proportion in first-tier cities.

The proportion of enterprises in

first-tier cities where the average

age of employees is older than 40 is

higher than the proportion in new

first-tier cities.

Against the backdrop of an aging

population, cities that are able to

attract young talent will have great-

er advantages in their development,

the report said.

Liu said, “In contrast, without a

sufficient inflow of young talent, it

may be difficult for first-tier cities to

maintain their development

momentum.”

These are the practical benefits that new

first-tier cities can offer college graduates

who choose them for work, and these

benefits all add to the cities’ ability

to attract young talent.”

Liu Yuanju,

researcher with the Shanghai Institute of Finance and Law

residence permit and providing

financial support for college

graduates to buy homes.

The report said the favorable poli-

cies, more job opportunities and rel-

atively low living expenses have all

helped these cities to surpass their

first-tier ones in becoming gradu-

ates’ favorite destinations to work

and live.

After graduating from a Beijing

university, Weng Tingyan worked as

a designer for an internet company

in the capital for three years before

moving to Wuhan early this year.

“My company set up a branch in

Wuhan, and was selecting staff

members to work there, and I volun-

teered to go,” said the 26-year-old,

who comes from Ningde, Fujian.

“I had become tired of the rapid

pace of work and life in Beijing and

was looking for opportunities in new

first-tier cities, including Xiamen, in

my home province of Fujian,” she

said. “My company in Beijing was

looking for someone to be transferred

to Wuhan on a higher salary. I had no

New first-tier cities such as Zhengzhou are developing rapidly and creating more opportunities

for young people than overpopulated first-tier ones. If young people can seize the opportunities,

they will be able to lead good lives and have bright futures more easily than in first-tier cities.”

Fu Ninghui,

who moved from Shenzhen to Zhengzhou, in her home province of Henan

CHANGES IN

POPULATION

BEIJING

SHANGHAI

21,516,

2014

24,256,

2014

24,152,

2015

2015

21,705,

2016

21,729,

2017

21,707,

2017

24,183,

2016

24,197,

2018

21,542,

2018

24,237,

368,

189,

24,

22,

165,

54,

13,

44,

104,

105,

Chengdu Hangzhou Chongqing Wuhan Xi’an Suzhou Tianjin Nanjing Changsha Zhengzhou Dongguan Qingdao Ningbo

Changes in population of new first-tier cities last year, compared with 2017

Number of universities and colleges offering bachelor's and higher academic degrees

Hangzhou

Qingdao

Tianjin

Nanjing

Chengdu

Xi'an

Shenyang

Suzhou

Wuhan

Wuxi

Chongqing

Changsha

Ningbo

Zhengzhou

Dongguan

Monthly salary expectations

in new first-tier cities

Unit: yuan

12,483 12,537 9,

11,671 10,296 6,

11,522 10,436 6,

11,316 10,652 7,

11,296 10,589 6,

11,008 9,762 6,

10,900 8,712 5,

10,765 10,106 7,

10,761 9,774 6,

10,519 9,688 6,

10,294 9,210 6,

10,226 9,053 6,

10,156 9,049 6,

9,852 8,757 6,

8,028 7,888 6,

Compared with

previous year

Population

Where college graduates

expect to find jobs this year

Where college graduates have

found jobs so far this year

Where universities and

colleges are located

30.63 First-tier

cities

44.18 New

first-tier cities

20.14 Second-

tier cities

5.05 Third-tier

cities and others

32.14 First-tier

cities

35.17 New

first-tier cities

17.82 Second-

tier cities

14.87 Third-tier

cities and others

10.48 First-tier

cities

24.53 New

first-tier cities

26.93 Second-

tier cities

38.06 Third-tier

cities and

others

Unit: percent

Unit: percent

Unit: percent

290,

340,

270,

190,

390,

40,000 30,

100,

240,000 260,

50,

100,

200,

Xi'an Zhengzhou Chengdu Chongqing Ningbo Qingdao Dongguan Wuhan Wuxi Changsha Shenyang Tianjin Hangzhou Nanjing Suzhou

Wuhan Xi'an Nanjing Tianjin Shenyang Chengdu Hangzhou Zhengzhou Chongqing Changsha Qingdao Ningbo Suzhou Dongguan Wuxi

(^32323130)
28
(^2625)
24
(^2019)
(^1715)
(^1110)
7
46
42
35
(^3129)
(^27272525)
23
13
(^87)
(^32)
Percentage increase in talented professionals arriving from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou
and Shenzhen, compared with those leaving for these four cities
Sources: Beijing Municipal Bureau of Statistics, Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Statistics, city government websites, Ministry of Education, Zhipin and Zhaopin MUKESH MOHANAN / CHINA DAILY
Before moving
After moving
Average salary for college graduates