With a population of 10 million, Tianjin has built a strong economy around the Tianjin Port, TEDA, and a strong consumer economy. Located 75 miles to the east of Beijing, Tianjin has a long history as a trading port for the north, and like Shanghai this has lead to a strong commercial infrastructure and business savvy population

As can seen in the figure above, Tianjin’s macroeconomic indicators all show year on year increases, and for many manufacturers this is leading them to invest in multiple manufacturing facilities to service not only the export market but also the domestic market.

For Tianjin, IT, automobile, chemical, metallurgy, biotechnology/ pharmaceutical, new energy and environmental protection have all become areas that are considered “pillar”. However many of the large investments recently have been technology related, specifically consumer electronics, as the local governments look to move away from commodity products to good that require more technology.

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Following recent investments by FedEx, TNT and others, Cathay has proven once again that this is going to be a busy year for logistics in China.

Partnering with Air China (51%), Cathay Pacific Airlines (49%) will buy out CITIC and Beijing Capital Airport and move the a hub to Shanghai (I am sure UPS and DHL will take comfort in that) that will be able to process 1.2 million tons a year.