Suzhou is  among the first cities listed by the State Council as being famous for its historic sites and cultural events.   It lies in southeast of Jiangsu province and is bordered by Shanghai in the east, Zhejiang in the south, Taihu Lake in the west and the Yangtze River in the north. It is within a one-hour drive of Shanghai.   While Suzhou is relatively flat and excellent for cycling it is surrounded by green hills and crisscrossed by canals.   The climate is mild. It has an annual average temperature of 16°C with abundant rainfall. Suzhou is surrounded by fertile land and is rich in natural resources. It is famous for the production of fish and rice on the Yangtze Delta.   Historically, Suzhou was the capital of the Wu State during the Spring and Autumn Period (722 – 481BC). In 514 BC, by the command of King He Lu of Wu, his senior minister Wu Zixu built the Great City. With a history of more than 2500 years, the city has retained many of its ancient features.   Visually, it takes on the beauty of its gardens as well as the charms of a canal town older than Venice. Natural views and historical sites still co-exist as they did in the poems and inscriptions of the ancient scholars. Suzhou was described as a “paradise on earth” according to Marco Polo. The nine gardens of Suzhou have already been listed as World Heritage sites by UNESCO

Suzhou originated the Wu culture. It is a “wise and artful” culture which enhances and refines the gentle and feminine arts. Such cultural characteristics are shown in delicate embroidery and traditional costume, the sweet mellow tone of the Wu dialect, the cuisine, jade carving and the slow-pace and lingering melody of Kunqu Opera.   Suzhou people are of a mild temperament establishing a good foundation for public order and security. This is the reason why the former president of Singapore, Mr. Li Guangyao, chose Suzhou as the site for the construction of the Singapore Industrial Zone after he visited many cities in China, and also the reason for attracting foreign investments. Suzhou has become the development “paradise on earth” for Taiwanese investors.   By the end of June 2003, 3,300 Taiwan companies had selected Suzhou as the site for new independent or joint venture operations with Chinese partners. They announced $25.728 billion in total capital investment and a registered investment of $12.89 billion. The Kunshan Industrial Zone, SIP., and The High-tech Zone attract the majority of the investments.

Among the world’s Fortune 500 companies, eighty have their subsidiaries in Suzhou. These include: General Motors, DuPont,  and Warner's, Japan's Panasonic, Sharp and Toyota, Phillips, Siemens, Alsthon, Asus, Benq ,AMD,TDK, Timken, Black and Decker , APP etc. Many Taiwanese hi-tech companies such as Benq, Asus ,Innosis , Hua Xiang Computers, Tai Da Electronics, Arima, etc have also set up branches in Suzhou. Some Financial Facts:   ·        The Suzhou GDP will reach 1 trillion RMB in 2004 ·        It is also developing nearby areas. ·        In 2003, Suzhou's GDP ranked forth among the nation's large and medium-sized cities. ·        Total values of imports and exports ranked number four. ·        The utilization of contracted investment and actual investment ranked first in China .. ·        In a recent Business Weekly, Suzhou city was the only Chinese city named as one of the 9 rising science and technology cities of the world. ·        Suzhou is internationalised manufacturing base of China , is regarded as the factory of the world . For more information about Suzhou: http://www.suzhou.gov.cn/English/