A city known as the cradle of China's fairy culture

Resident population: 7.03 million (2023)

Area: 13,930.1 square kilometers

Location: Northeastern Shandong province in eastern part of Chinese mainland

Economy

Yantai is one of the first coastal cities to open up its economy to foreign countries. The city has made rapid strides in industries such as clean energy, and has been transforming its traditional industries by enhancing its innovative capacity. By the end of 2023, the city's GDP was roughly 1.02 trillion yuan ($140.34 billion), making it the 26th city in China to join the one-trillion-yuan club.

Yantai is home to numerous renowned brands such as Changyu wine, Polaris watches, and Tri-circle locks. According to the 2024 Chinese brand value evaluation list released in Zhejiang province, 26 Yantai brands made the list, more than anywhere else in China. In 2023, the brand values of Yantai apples and Yantai cherries reached 15.29 billion yuan and 5.693 billion yuan, respectively.

By the end of 2023, Yantai's total import and export value was 456.85 billion yuan, an increase of 1.5 percent year-on-year. The city's imports and exports with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative reached 121.4 billion yuan.

Administrative divisions

Yantai city governs five districts – Zhifu, Fushan, Muping, Laishan, and Penglai, as well as six county-level cities - Longkou, Laiyang, Laizhou, Zhaoyuan, Qixia and Haiyang.

Sister cities

As of the start of 2024, Yantai, a coastal city in Shandong province, had established sister relations and friendly cooperation partnerships with 39 cities in 25 countries across the world. It established its first sister city relationship with San Diego, the United States in 1985.