(Yicai) Oct. 23 -- Disposable income per head in 11 Chinese provincial-level regions exceeded the national average in the first three quarters of the year, three more than a year earlier, according to the latest official data.

Shanghai ranked first, with a per capita disposable income of CNY69,220 (USD9,720) in the year to Sept. 30, followed by Beijing at CNY67,206, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Oct. 20. Zhejiang province was third with CNY54,653.

National disposable income per head was CNY32,509, up 5.1 percent in nominal terms and 5.2 percent after deducting price factors, the NBS data also showed.

The city of Tianjin and the provinces of Jiangsu and Guangdong came in fourth to sixth, with per capita disposable incomes of over CNY42,000. Fujian province took seventh place with CNY39,213, followed by Shandong province, Chongqing, Liaoning province, and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with more than CNY30,000 each.

Chongqing, Inner Mongolia, Anhui province, Hunan province, and Hubei province were the highest-ranking in central and western China thanks to relatively high industrialization and urbanization levels.

The pace of industrialization and urbanization in central and western China has accelerated in recent years. With scientific and technological innovation becoming the fundamental driving force of economic development, several modern industrial clusters have rapidly arisen in the region.

The development of industries has driven rapid growth in the demand for workers. Central and western China have attracted more and more students from local colleges and universities to stay put after graduation and encouraged many professionals to move in from other regions.

Legal entities registered in Anhui had over 17.7 million staff at the end of 2023, up 30 percent in five years, according to data from the NBS’ two latest national economic censuses. It was the fastest growth rate among Chinese provincial-level regions.

Editor: Futura Costaglione