2 1 Shi Ji Jing Ji Bao Dao·2025-09-26 08:02Economic Competition Between Hubei and Henan - As of June 2025, the GDP gap between Hubei and Henan is only 200 billion yuan, with Hubei closing the gap by over 700 billion yuan from 2020 to 2024 [1] - The discussion around the potential shift of the title "Central China's Number One Province" is gaining traction, with predictions that this turning point may occur within the next two years [1] - Hubei has never held the title of "Central China's Number One Province," while Henan has maintained this position for decades [1] Hubei's Economic Growth Driven by Foreign Trade - In the first half of 2025, Hubei's total import and export value exceeded 400 billion yuan, reaching 402.31 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 28.4%, marking a historical high for the same period [2] - The second quarter saw an impressive growth rate of 39.1%, surpassing the national average by 34.6 percentage points [2] - Hubei's foreign trade has consistently broken records since 2020, with annual totals surpassing 4 billion, 5 billion, 6 billion, and 7 billion yuan in subsequent years [2] Characteristics of Hubei's Foreign Trade - Hubei's foreign trade is characterized by the rise of emerging markets, simultaneous efforts from both private and state-owned enterprises, and an optimized export product structure [3][4] - In the first half of 2025, Hubei's exports to Belt and Road countries reached 220.81 billion yuan, growing by 32.6% and accounting for over 50% of the province's total imports and exports [3] - Private enterprises played a significant role, with their import and export value reaching 286.25 billion yuan, a 32.9% increase, contributing 22.6 percentage points to Hubei's overall growth [3] Hubei's Industrial and High-Tech Manufacturing Growth - Hubei's industrial output value increased by 7.9% year-on-year in the first half of 2025, with high-tech manufacturing growing by 14.4% [5] - Key products such as lithium-ion batteries, electronic components, and complete computers saw production increases of 62.1%, 53.0%, and 31.5% respectively [5] - The province's industrial profit growth of 12.0% contrasts sharply with the national average of negative growth [5] Henan's Foreign Trade Performance - In the first half of 2025, Henan's exports reached 278.98 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 38.8%, slightly higher than Hubei's growth [7] - The recovery of mobile phone exports, which had previously declined, saw a significant increase of 58.6% in 2025 due to the return of iPhone orders to Zhengzhou [8] - Henan's high-tech product exports also grew significantly, with a total value of 123.69 billion yuan, marking a 75.8% increase [8] Henan's Industrial Transformation - Henan's high-tech manufacturing sector grew by 14.9% in the first half of 2025, outpacing Hubei [9] - The province is focusing on the development of new energy vehicles, with significant investments from major companies like BYD and CATL [9] - Despite progress, Henan still faces challenges in transitioning from traditional industries, with high-tech manufacturing accounting for only 14.0% of its industrial output [10]