Editor’s Note: Zhejiang witnessed the vibrant economic development and cross-cultural communication in the fields of GDP growth, nighttime tourist attractions, surging online retail sales, and people-to-people exchanges in Jan-Oct 2021. Today’s coverage of “Zhejiang Highlights” will inform you of the latest economic rankings, and more interesting stories about foreigners’ lives in Zhejiang. Let’s have a quick glimpse of today’s takeaways.

1.Hangzhou among top 10 Chinese cities for Q1-Q3 GDP

Shanghai took the crown among Chinese cities for GDP in the first three quarters of this year with 3.09 trillion yuan ($482 billion), representing an increase of 9.8 percent year-on-year, followed by Beijing and Shenzhen, with 2.98 and 2.18 trillion yuan respectively.

Among Chinese cities, seven cities' GDP growth surpassed the country's economic growth of 9.8 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters, including Wuhan (18.8 percent), Suzhou (10.9 percent), Beijing (10.7 percent), Hangzhou (10 percent), Chengdu (10 percent), Guangzhou (9.9 percent) and Chongqing (9.9 percent). Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, ranked eighth with a Jan-Sept GDP of 1.32 trillion yuan.

2.6 Zhejiang nighttime tourist attractions honored nationally

Six tourist attractions in East China's Zhejiang province were recently included in a national program to boost nighttime culture and tourism consumption. They were Hangzhou Songcheng Park in Hangzhou, Qinghefang Historical and Cultural Street in Hangzhou, the Old Bund in Ningbo, Wenzhou Nantang Scenic Area in Wenzhou, Xitang Ancient Town in Jiaxing, and Hengdian World Studios in Jinhua. These tourist attractions feature sightseeing spots, restaurants, bars, boutique shops, and homestay hotels that stay operational day and night.

3.China's Zhejiang registers surging online retail sales in Jan-Oct

Zhejiang Province, an e-commerce heartland in east China, saw a robust increase in online retail sales in the first ten months of this year. The online retail sales of the province in the period reached 1.84 trillion yuan (about 288.3 billion U.S. dollars), up 12 percent from the same period last year, data from the provincial department of commerce showed.

Home to the e-commerce giant Alibaba, residents in the province spent nearly 953.74 billion yuan on online shopping from January to October, up 14.7 percent year on year. Clothes, shoes and bags, home decorations, computers, and communication and consumer electronics ranked in the top categories in terms of online sales. In the period, the country's online retail sales rose 17.4 percent year on year to reach approximately 10.38 trillion yuan, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.

4. Algerian expat hails Taizhou as a heaven for ventures

Bounezra Rami, an Algerian, has chosen to start up his business in Taizhou. In June, Rami set up an internet company specializing in website design and bug fixes in the city in East China's Zhejiang province. He made the decision to do so after visiting the city with his girlfriend, who is a Taizhou native, earlier this year.

Even though he has only lived in Taizhou for five months, the Algerian has already been enchanted by the city's beautiful landscapes, food, and traditional Chinese medicine. Rami goes for a jog or walks his dog on the greenway in front of his home every morning. This slow pace of life, he said, is appealing to him.

5. Zhejiang athlete promotes kung fu in Argentina

According to Chen, martial arts is the second most popular sport in Argentina, following football. Popular martial arts disciplines in the country include taekwondo, Jeet Kune Do, karate, Brazilian jujitsu, and kung fu, which Chinese martial arts is usually called.

Chen has gone to great lengths to promote kung fu in the country. She has invited her students to attend Spring Festival galas and other traditional festivities in the local China Town, showcased her kung fu skills when she was a guest anchor on Argentine television channels, performed kung fu in local films and TV dramas, as well as shared about Chinese legends in her lectures.

Chen has recently been preparing to hold an online competition for traditional Chinese martial arts, which has so far drawn more than 700 athletes from 22 countries. "This is a brand-new challenge for me, and I hope to make more people fall in love with Chinese kung fu and culture," said Chen.

Editor: Huang Yan