Hubei province has become a major industrial construction area in China since the 1950s. Over the last six decades, Hubei has built plenty of large-scale mining bases like Wuhan Iron and Steel, Daye Iron Mine, Jingxiang Phosphorite Mine, Yingcheng Gypsum Mine, etc, relying on its rich mineral resources. It has become one of China’s most fundamental industrial complexes for its comprehensive industrial system, pillared by iron and steel, machinery, power and electricity, textile and provisions industries.

According to figures from the Statistics Bureau of Hubei province, the provincial gross product reached 1.28 trillion yuan in 2009. In terms of comparable prices, it grew by 13.2 percent from last year, 4.5 percentage points higher than the national growth rate.

The 2009 agriculture added value totaled 191.59 million yuan, up by 5.2 percent year-on-year. It’s the seventh consecutive year that the growth rate has been above 4 percent.

The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size amounted to 474.22 billion yuan, up 20.1 percent from last year. Non-public sectors of the economy grew fast and contributed 78.3 percent of the industry in Hubei province in 2009, up 23.8 percent over last year. Corporate profits continued to grow and the deficit decreased in the industries with difficulty in developing, such as steel and nonferrous metal industries.

The 2009 total volume of retail sales of social consumer goods was 592.841 billion yuan, with an increase of 19 percent. Encouraged by the preferential policies for rural residences to buy household electronic appliances and auto mobiles, the retail sales volume went up by 21.6 percent to 180 billion yuan. The growth rate was 3.7 percentage points higher than the urban growth rate, marking a pronounced change from the usual city-dominated consumption.

The per capita disposable income of Hubei grew by 9.2 percent, from 1214 yuan to 14,367 yuan. Rural per capita net income was 5035.26 yuan, the first time over 5000; and per capita income increased by 8.1 percent, 378.88yuan.

Among the 159 major projects arranged in 2009 in Hubei, 150 were in construction. The paid-in investment totaled 115.126 billion yuan, higher than the annual project schedule.

The Hubei real estate market was thriving in 2009, with a total investment in real estate development up by 34.5 percent to 120billion yuan.

Due to the world financial crises, the export industry went through a tough year in 2009. The foreign import and export volume was down by 6.8 percent to $17.23 billion.