On Jan 27, the Ministry of Commerce held a special news conference on the evaluation results of the national economic development zones in 2020.

At the meeting, the ministry released its comprehensive assessment of the progress made by the national economic development zones in 2020. Among the 218 national zones, the Nantong Economic & Technological Development Area ranked 29th, one place higher for the NETDA than in 2019.

The NETDA – located in Nantong city in East China's Jiangsu province – put in a financial performance last year which reflected a stable development trend, optimized infrastructure, improvements to general efficiency and quality and a strengthening of its driving role in the city's opening up.

In the past year, the zone's gross domestic product came in at 74.34 billion yuan ($11.5 billion), while the general public budget revenue reached 5.9 billion yuan, with tax accounting for 90.9 percent of the total of Nantong, ranking first in the city.

Total imports and exports were worth 44.2 billion yuan, ranking second in the city and that performance placed it among the top 30 in the assessment of the 219 national economic and technological development zones

Facing new requirements and expectations from the Nantong municipal government for the next five-year period, the NETDA has mapped out a course of action.

It first made clear its goal of further focusing on its main responsibilities and core business. It will aim to establish and develop an industry benchmark, an innovation highland and an open demonstration and efficiency window.