Shenzhen Investment Service
Hotline: 86-755-82143348, Email:amyhuang@citilinkia.com
Shenzhen has steadily grown in the past 20 years to become a booming metropolitan city. It is located directly opposite Hong Kong, and now has several border crossings with the territory. In addition, Shenzhen enjoys many preferential policies. Till now, Shenzhen has become one of the most attractive investing cities throughout China.
The Special Economic Zone of Shenzhen
The Special Economic Zone was an experiment in market capitalism within Deng’s self-professed “socialism with Chinese characteristics.” Shenzhen was chosen as a location due to its proximity to Hong Kong and the cultural links to the two cities share. It was also far enough away from the rest of the country that if the experiment went wrong or proved politically inappropriate, damage limitation to the rest of China’s still very communist ideology would be minimized. This leads to the city effectively being sealed off from the rest of China.
Investment Laws and Tax Incentives
The airport was sited about an hour’s drive outside the zone, and special permission had to be obtained for Chinese nationals from anywhere else in the country to enter. Meanwhile, it was easy access for Hong Kong residents, and even foreign nationals at the time could obtain a “Shenzhen visa” with validity only applicable for the SEZ. Investment laws and tax incentives were drawn up specifically for Shenzhen only, and the concept proved successful, propelling the further opening up of China and continuous economic reform. Shenzhen has subsequently become one of the largest cities in the Pearl River Delta region, which has developed into one of the economic powerhouses of China.
Increasingly Rising Official Role of Shenzhen
Just prior to being granted SEZ status, Shenzhen was promoted to prefecture level, directly governed by Guangdong Province, in November 1979. It was given the right of provincial-level economic administration in November 1988, and now reports directly to Beijing. The links to Hong Kong remained strong, and in the lead up to the handover of Hong Kong to China in July, the Intercontinental Hotel at the border of Lo Wu was home to the Provisional Legislative Council and Provisional Executive Council of Hong Kong, who politically couldn’t meet in Hong Kong until the British had left.
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Convenient Transport to Hong Kong
Shenzhen has steadily grown in the past 20 years to become a booming metropolitan city. It is located directly opposite Hong Kong, and now has several border crossings with the territory – a far cry from the days of the mid-1960s and 1970s when British and Chinese troops yelled insults (and occasionally shot at each other) from across a heavily fortified border. Today, there are six land crossing points on the boundary between Shenzhen and Hong Kong. From west to east these are Shenzhen Bay Port road crossing; Fu Tian Kou An to Lok Ma Chau rail connection linking Shenzhen Metro Line 4 to the MTR’s East Rail Line Lok Ma Chau Spur Line; Huanggang to Lok Ma Chau road connection; Futian to Man Kam To road connection; Louhu to Lo Wu rail connection linking the MTR East Rail Line to Shenzhen Metro Line 1, Shenzhen Rail Station and Luohu in general; and the Shatoujiao to Sha Tau Kok road connection.
Convenient Intercity Transport
Both of the rail connections require the passengers to cross the Shenzhen River on foot as there is no direct rail connection between the two cities, although the Hong Kong intercity trains to other mainland cities pass through Shenzhen without stopping. It has made the Lo Wu border between Shenzhen and Hong Kong the one of the busiest individual passenger borders in the world with an estimated 160,000 crossings daily.
Contact Us
For further queries, please do not hesitate to contact ATAHK at anytime, anywhere by simply calling China hotline at 86-755-82143422, 86-755-82143512, or emailing to anitayao@citilinkia.com