PICTURE CHINA

The Pudong New District is located across the Huangpu River from Shanghai proper and is widely considered to be the financial and commercial center of China. The area is home to thousands of multi-national companies and has come to represent Shanghai’s ascent to the premier business city in China, if not all of Asia.

Until 1990 when it was granted status as a “Special Economic Zone”, the Pudong area was covered by rice patties and farmland and was inhabited mostly by poor immigrant workers. Today it is a maze of skyscrapers and apartment blocks stretching out in all directions. It is home to the world’s third tallest building (the Jin Mao Building), the new Pudong airport and the world’s only commercial maglev train.

This rapid growth has made Shanghai the most modern and wealthy city in China but has created many problems as well. A blanket of smog covers the city on most mornings, the roads are congested with traffic and a housing shortage forces many of Shanghai’s 10 million residents of share very cramped living quarters.