Economy

Jinzhou has a wide range of industries. Major traditional industries include petrochemistry, metallurgy, textiles, pharmacy and building materials.Jinzhou Economic and Technical Development Zone  : The Jinzhou Economic and Technical Development Zone was established in 1992. It is among the first province-level development zones approved by Liaoning Province. The development zone enjoys convenient transportation with easy access to Jinzhou Seaport, Jinzhou airport and several state highways.Shopping and Services : Within the city, some western franchises have set up shop, most notably KFC, which has a long established foothold in Chinese markets. RT-Mart, New-Mart and Do-Do Express are major food and sundries retailers. Bank of Jinzhou (Jinzhou Yinhang) is the only bank in Jinzhou upon this writing with native English speaking staff, while Western Union, Bank of China and many other banking service are also present in the city. Visa and MasterCard are not accepted in Jinzhou, aside from a few large bank branches with access to these networks.Photograph of a shopping mall in Jinzhou city.

Transport

Jinzhou Airport provides air transport to major airports in China. There are two railway stations in the city, one designated for long trips and one for shorter routes. The most popular way to get around Jinzhou is on foot or by bicycle. Taxis crowd the streets and start at 5 RMB per trip. Bus routes also blanket the city and provide the most economical means of transportation, but are not always reliable.

Geography

Jinzhou is located in the southwestern portion of Liaoning, and borders Panjin, Anshan, and Shenyang to the east, and Huludao on the west. The city's southern coast is the Liaodong Bay. On the north are Chaoyang and Fuxin.Jinzhou has a monsoon-influenced humid continental climate (Köppen Dwa), with four distinct seasons; winters are cold but very dry while summers are hot and humid. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −7.9 °C (17.8 °F) to 24.3 °C (75.7 °F) in July, with the annual mean being 9.50 °C (49.1 °F). The annual average precipitation is between 540 and 640 millimetres (21 and 25 in), a majority of which usually occurs in July and August alone. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 45% in July to 68% in three months, the city receives 2,682 hours of bright sunshine annually, with autumn and winter being especially sunny.Fossil-bearing rocks are exposed in the city's vicinity, including the Yixian Formation. A genus of Early Cretaceous birds has been named Jinzhouornis in honor of the locality, but it appears to be a junior synonym of Confuciusornis which was found in the same formation some years earlier.

History

Jinzhou is an ancient city with over a thousand years of history. Originally known as Tuhe (徒河), it was part of Yan in the Warring States period. Under the Qin dynasty, the majority of what is now Jinzhou became part of Liaodong township. It was part of Changli township in Youzhou during the Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms periods, but fell under the jurisdiction of Yingzhou in the Beiwei, Dongwei, and Beiqi periods, before becoming part of Liucheng township and then Yan township during the Sui Dynasty and Tang dynasty. During the Tang, it was the seat of the Andong township.The name "Jinzhou" came into use in the Liao dynasty, when it belonged to Zhongjing prefecture. In the Jin dynasty, it was part of Dongjing Township and Beijing township. It belonged to Liaoyang Xingzhongshu in the Yuan dynasty and to Liaodong township in the Ming dynasty. It was ruled by Tianfu during the Qing dynasty, when its name was changed from Jinzhou to Jinxian. It was previously known in English as Chinhsien and Chinchow.People's Liberation Army launches final strike on JinzhouDuring the Republican period, Jinzhou was attached to Liaoning Province. When the Chinese Civil War resumed in 1945, Jinzhou was the site of a major battle between the Communist and Nationalist forces, since it is where the main route from Manchuria through Shanhai Pass enters central China. Its capture on November 22, 1945 by Nationalist forces under Du Yuming forced the Communists to agree to a temporary ceasefire that lasted several months.After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Liaoxi Province was founded and Jinzhou became its provincial capital. Jinzhou came back under the administration of Liaoning Province in 1954, when Liaoxi and Liaodong provinces re-merged.