Walking through Pudong, the two areas separated by a fenced net are vividly referred to as “Kuan Nei” and “Guan Wai”. The 10 square kilometer “Kuanwai” area is the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone in Pudong. In 1991, Zhu Rongji visited five countries in Western Europe and explained to the foreign guests: "The free trade zone in China is your free trade zone, FREE TRADE ZONE."

Five months after Pudong announced the development and opening in 1990, a group of people from all directions took a car and sailed through the reeds. In a simple two-story building, they announced the establishment of the mainland’s first bonded area outside China’s mainland. Gaoqiao Free Trade Zone. "To modernize China's economy, we must achieve internationalization, and the bonded area is the place where the Chinese economy and the world first come together," said Zhao Qizheng, former vice mayor of Shanghai and director of the Pudong New Area Management Committee.

As the leading figure in the first wave of Waigaoqiao development, Yu Yanhua, the first general manager of Waigaoqiao Development Co., Ltd., said: “Using the combination of free trade and export processing, aiming at free ports, we must implement tariff exemptions for goods, people and materials. And the freedom of import and export, the completion of the new economic radiation new area, the first ice-breaking task is to build a dock." 1993 "Liberation Daily" reported that Waigaoqiao has only been built in 28 months to have "four 10,000-ton berths The first-phase terminal of the port with a 1,000-ton barge berth created a new record in Shanghai's construction history.

With the planning of the land, and the docks in the harbor area, the Special Administrative Region of the Special Administrative Region has a policy. Next, it is necessary to build nests and attract phoenixes. The first wave of investors comes from China, post and telecommunications, aviation, textiles, etc. The purchase of land for building is very strong. According to statistics, only 526 enterprises were approved in 1993 alone. However, the situation of the prosperous time was not long. In 1994, the state abolished the tax exemption for imported cars from foreign-funded enterprises, and immediately cut off the financial roads of hundreds of importing vehicle operators. Yan Yanhua is not discouraged. He said, "If you want to attract gold phoenixes that lay eggs, you must not be afraid of hardship. You can come in and go out."

Hard work pays off. In 1996, the State Council issued the "tax-free venture" dividend, which attracted the world's top 500 companies Intel first settled in, followed by the United States Delphi Automotive chassis company, the United States Hewlett-Packard printers, Philips, IBM and other groups of multinational companies have entered the bonded zone one after another. . This is the first wave of foreign trade after the arrival of Japan's ITOCHU Corporation (China's first foreign-invested trading company) in 1992. "The first year of sales came in more than 10 million U.S. dollars, and 10 years later it was 120 million U.S. Customs revenues rose from 45 million U.S. dollars in 1994 to 340 million U.S. dollars in 1995, and to 1.697 billion U.S. dollars in 1996. Five times."

Some people say that the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone is the eye of Pudong. The eyes lived and all the features were alive. According to incomplete statistics, as of now, there are 221 operating centers of multinational corporations, 73 regional headquarters of transnational corporations, 42 operators of Asia-Pacific carriers, and 34 top 100 enterprises in Pudong; annual import and export volume of Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, 2010 The annual turnover was 77 billion U.S. dollars. Afterwards, the settlement caliber was changed to Renminbi. In 2017, it was 795.50 billion U.S. dollars, forming four major industries of international trade, processing and manufacturing, modern logistics and warehousing. According to Liu Hong, chairman of Waigaoqiao Group, the merit of this latest report card focuses on functional innovation. "In 3 years, 30,000 companies have tax revenues exceeding RMB 10 billion. The FT account that can be financed overseas and the negative inventory model for foreign investment, including the innovation and reform of financial services, have become possible at Waigaoqiao," said Liu Hong.

On September 29, 2013, with the approval of the State Council, the four major regions including the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, the logistics park, the Yangshan Bonded Port Area, and the Shanghai Pudong Airport Comprehensive Bonded Zone were merged, and the China (Shanghai) Free Trade Pilot Zone was formally established. “The linkage between the three ports and three zones has brought challenges to traditional trade, logistics and manufacturing. We must upgrade the overall energy level and extend the entire industry chain,” said Liu Hong. In recent years, Waigaoqiao has taken advantage of its entire industry chain, including property, import, export, and logistics, to guide the business of multinational corporations to the high-end links of R&D, maintenance, and testing. Carl Zeiss (Shanghai) Management Co., Ltd. is a typical example of a transition from a trading company to an R&D center and eventually upgraded to a regional headquarters.

In recent years, the establishment of a headquarters economy with special customs supervision and regional characteristics has always been the focus of Waigaoqiao. Liu Hong said that we are doing large-scale industrial platform services in the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone including finance, trade, logistics, and manufacturing. Only 10 square kilometers of regional output sales amounted to 1.5 trillion yuan, even in the international arena is unique. “Eg Jingdong’s world’s first “Unrestricted Retail” “offline full-line experience store, Jingdong Hui”, is a new model of integrated, one-stop innovation platform service. It will rely on the advantages of the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, which integrates JD.com globally. The purchase of high-quality goods, integration of culture, tourism, and finance to create a set of scenes of consumer experience.

The birth of China's first wall, the first road in the bonded area, the construction of the first port, the first closure, and the supply of tax-free cars... Every day in Waigaoqiao is new. The waters of the Yangtze River rush to the sea and they do not return. 28 changes in spring and autumn. In the next 10 years, the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone is still worth keeping in mind.

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