(Yicai) Jan. 21 -- Wenzhou's gross domestic product exceeded CNY1 trillion (USD143.5 billion) last year, making the major private economy hub in Zhejiang province the 28th Chinese city to join the club.

Wenzhou's 2025 economic growth was driven by the strong vitality of its private economy, having almost 1.6 million registered private firms and individual businesses, ranking among the top in Zhejiang, Mayor Zhang Wenjie said in a government work report released yesterday. The value-added of private industrial enterprises above a designated size accounted for 91 percent of the total.

In 2024, Wenzhou's economy expanded 6.3 percent to CNY971.9 billion (USD139.5 billion) from the previous year. Its population reached 9.85 million, up 91,000, ranking first among Chinese ordinary prefecture-level cities.

The Wenzhou people have ventured across the country and around the world, bringing with them abundant resources such as capital and information, said Tang Hairu, vice president of the Zhejiang Society for Urban Studies. In recent years, the city has effectively utilized these resource advantages by expanding platforms and other initiatives, Tang added.

Wenzhou has made significant efforts in revitalizing traditional sectors and nurturing emerging industries, creating favorable conditions for development, placing great emphasis on the advancement of technology and the establishment of higher education institutions, Tang noted, adding that by strengthening and expanding its tech capabilities and universities, it can more effectively support industrial development.

In addition, the increasingly improved high-speed rail network within Zhejiang enables educational and scientific resources from places like Hangzhou to better serve the economic development of Wenzhou, Tang said.

Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chongqing, Suzhou, Wuxi, Dongguan, Quanzhou, and Yantai are among other cities with a GDP of over CNY1 trillion.

Editor: Martin Kadiev