Asia Times Online, 20 May 2009, Wu Zhong
Shanghai, the country's second-most important city and already an important financial center, has just won central government backing to chase its long-held ambition of becoming an international financial and shipping center by 2020.
But water in the distance can't quench a nearby fire - and Shanghai's leaders are having to repair damage caused by the global economic downturn before they can turn to more glamorous goals. That means Shanghai may have to rely for the foreseeable future on manufacturing industries for growth.
"Some comrades say Shanghai is bound to be finished if it develops only services and gives up manufacturing," said Yu Zhengsheng, Shanghai Communist Party secretary and a politburo member. "This view is correct. The growth of services must not involve the sacrifice of manufacturing. We cannot simply abandon manufacturing."
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