This coastal-border city is situated on the bank of the Yalu River in southeastern Liaoning province and has a concentration of industrial, commercial, logistics and tourism businesses. It covers a 15,200 sq km area and consists of three county-level cities, three districts, and one State-level border economic cooperation zone. It has a population of 2.43 million.
Major features
War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea Museum
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army entered Korea to fight against U.S. aggression when the Korean War broke out in 1950 and Dandong, a frontier town, experienced first-hand the horrors of war. It was a heroic place and understandably has China’s only Korean War Museum. That war, which shattered Korea, is truthfully depicted in each photo, each article, and each word in the museum.
Hub city with convenient traffic
Location map of Dandong in the Northeast Asia
Dandong sits in the heart of Northeast Asia, where routes extending to Tokyo, Seoul, and Beijing converge. Its rail connections put it 220 km from Pyongyang and 420 km from Seoul, making a railway hub for Northeast Asia.
It is only 220 km from the city of Shenyang and 252 km from Dalian via the Dandong-Shenyang and Dandong-Dalian expressways. Other connections in the works include the Dandong-Haicheng Expressway, Shenyang-Dandong Railway, and Danyang-Dalian High-Speed Railway. This means that Dandong, Shenyang and Dalian will form a golden triangle for Liaoning in its opening to the outside world. Meanwhile, other railway lines for northeastern China and a Dandong-Tonghua Expressway are under construction. These will open new passageways to the sea, which will have a positive trade impact on 13 cities in this part of China.
In addition, a new bridge across the Yalu River is being built, giving Dandong, Liaoning and the rest of Northeast China a greater connection with the outside world. The open port of Dandong is only 245 nautical miles from Inchon, ROK and means better connections with other ports in ROK and Japan.
Charming scenery
Photo by Min Zhengfu
Dandong nestles up against mountains, facing a river and the ocean, with charming scenery and a good climate. You can enjoy a cool summer and warm winter here, with mean annual temperature of 9℃. It is one of Northeast China’s warmest, most moist places and has plenty of freshwater resources. Its forest cover amounts to 66 percent, making it an excellent tourist and garden city, thanks also to its 24 scenic spots, nature reserves and forest parks.
Some unique Dandong offerings include a Korea tour, border tour, hot springs, seaside vacation, and golf courses.
Dandong has 108,000 hectares of wetlands in a State-level conservation zone and is a migratory bird center. Visitors come to see the thousands of birds that fly through here every year.
Open city with limitless business opportunities
Dandong sits at the intersection of the Northeast Asia Economic Circle Dandong got State Council approval as an open city back in 1988. Then, in 2006, it was made part of Liaoning's Five Points and One Line opening-up strategy.
In July 2009, Liaoning’s coastal economic belt was added to China’s development strategy to boost the growth of Dandong. Now, coastal economic development is being pushed in Xinqu, Dagushan, Qianyang and Donggang. Xinqu will be the administrative, economic, cultural and commercial capital of Dandong. The Honggang District will be used to develop the heavy chemicals industry at the port, for a major economic zone that connects Dandong and Dalian and benefits Anshan and Shenyang.
New industrial city with real strength
Dandong has a distinguished history in the paper, textiles, clothing and commodities industries and a star reputation in light industry. Now, it has decided to expand into other areas.
It has 900 enterprises specializing in agricultural products processing, transport and communication facilities, energy, metals mining, extrusion, textiles, and mechanical equipment. Of these, the Huanghai Bus and Shuguang Axle companies have a reputation both in china and abroad. Dandong has also developed hydro, wind and thermal power, with a generating capacity that is in second place in Liaoning.
In addition, its agricultural products have a good name in China and abroad. Dandong is the largest production and export base for strawberries, Chinese chestnuts and shellfish, and is known for its trade, service industry and logistics, making it an important distribution center for exports.
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