The economic importance of Chinese cities clustering

The objective of this study is to analyze some of the results of China’s “new urbanization” policy, which is to promote the creation of giant urban clusters chengshiqun 城市群The methodology of the paper includes the analysis of traditional and modern theoretical approaches to the study of urban agglomerations and the phenomenon of megalopolises, as well as a generalization of the results based on practical data. The Chinese urban agglomerations considered in this study are close to the megalopolis, the concept of which was developed in the mid-20th century by Jean Gottmann, but Chinese mega-clusters with a population of 80 to 200 million or more significantly exceed the megalopolis in their scale. China plans to create 19 urban clusters, which will account for nine-tenths of all economic activity in the country. As a result, China will turn into a country of megalopolises – “supercities” in the near future. Three of them already exist and are successfully developing according to the plan: the Greater Bay Area, including Hong Kong and Macau; the Yangtze River Delta, built around Shanghai, and Jingjinji with its center in Beijing. The article notes the features of giant urban clusters in the PRC: their formation occurs with the active direct role of the state, they are characterized by the creation of a single high-speed transport network and a higher degree of integration than Western megalopolises. The creation of large urban agglomerations is considered in this article as a new stimulus for economic growth in the PRC, an attempt is made to analyze the mechanisms of this relationship. According to the author, the unification of Chinese cities into large agglomerations will contribute to the consolidation of markets, growth in productivity, as well as the rapid greening and digitalization of the economy.

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