Analysis of the Guiding Significance of Yangtze River Economic Belt Development for Investment Layout and Beneficiary Sectors

The background data you provided shows that the GDP share of the Yangtze River Economic Belt has increased from 42.2% 10 years ago to 47.3%, and its regional GDP has more than doubled, indicating that this region’s weight in China’s economic structure continues to rise. Based on authoritative sources and verifiable facts, I have sorted out guiding conclusions for investment layout and industrial transfer (avoiding fictional unverified quantitative data).

• Reports from Cailian Press on relevant arrangements of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) show that regional coordination is continuously advancing, and the development balance of the eastern, central and western regions has improved; the Yangtze River Economic Belt adheres to the principle of “jointly promote great protection, not great development” and promotes the green transformation of traditional industries such as chemical industry [1]. This suggests that investment should focus on greenization, intellectualization and cross-regional coordination.
• Articles from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) point out that it is necessary to break regional administrative barriers, improve cross-regional market mechanisms and rule systems, and promote precise docking of eastern technology and capital with central and western resources and human resources through carriers such as factor docking and “Regional Factor Coordination Fund” [3]. This provides a policy and mechanism basis for the central and western regions to undertake and co-build industrial chains.

• Against the background of projects such as “Eastern Data and Western Computing”, the path of data elements and computing power resources gathering in the central and western regions is clearer, and a digital collaboration pattern of “eastern application, hinterland support” can be formed at qualified nodes [3]. Combined with the practices of the Yangtze River Economic Belt in new energy vehicles, intelligent manufacturing and artificial intelligence, industrial transfer is more likely to coexist with “gradient undertaking + vertical division of labor”: the eastern region focuses on R&D and headquarters functions, while the central and western regions focus on undertaking manufacturing supporting, key components and computing power infrastructure links.

• Gather towards high-value links and innovative elements: Combined with the cluster practices of the Yangtze River Economic Belt in electronic information, high-end equipment, automobiles, artificial intelligence and other fields [2], priority should be given to layout in R&D, core components, industrial software and computing power infrastructure links.
• Green investment under ecological constraints: Against the background that the main stream of the Yangtze River has maintained Class II water quality for many consecutive years and environmental protection requirements along the river are becoming stricter, heavy chemical industry and high-emission projects need to be cautious, and green manufacturing, energy conservation and environmental protection and circular economy fields are more in line with policy orientation [1][2].
• Channel and hub value: The construction of comprehensive three-dimensional transportation corridors along the river and channels such as river-sea combined transportation makes ports and hub nodes with multimodal transportation conditions have more advantages in logistics and supply chain integration [1][2].

• New energy and new energy vehicles: There are practices of intelligent manufacturing bases for complete vehicles and key parts along the river, and coordination with river-sea combined transportation channels to improve the efficiency of “from factory to export” [2].
• Electronic information and artificial intelligence: The Yangtze River Economic Belt has a good foundation in artificial intelligence large models, quality inspection systems and application scenario innovation, and the combination of scientific research and industrial transformation is close [2].
• High-end equipment and advanced manufacturing: Relying on existing industrial clusters such as high-end equipment and intelligent manufacturing demonstration projects, investment can tilt towards key processes, automated production lines and core components [2].
• Digital economy and computing power infrastructure: Combined with the “Eastern Data and Western Computing” project, build data centers, computing power networks and supporting energy systems at computing power nodes in the central and western regions to undertake eastern computing power demand and radiate surrounding areas [3].

• Downstream (core area of Yangtze River Delta Integration):突出全球金融、航运与研发总部功能，适宜布局跨国总部、研发中心、国际金融与专业服务；在新能源汽车、人工智能等高端环节更具集聚效应[1][2]。
• Middle reaches (Yangtze River Middle Reaches Urban Agglomeration): It has profound scientific and educational resources and manufacturing foundations, and new energy vehicles and intelligent manufacturing demonstration projects drive the agglomeration of industrial chain supporting facilities, which is suitable for deep integration of R&D and manufacturing, and investment in key components and intelligent production lines [2].
• Upstream (Chengdu-Chongqing Dual-City Economic Circle): One of the key regions to undertake industrial transfer and build a national strategic hinterland. Relying on projects such as “Eastern Data and Western Computing”, it is suitable for layout of computing power infrastructure, data centers, supporting new energy and advanced manufacturing [3].
• Important nodes and channel cities (such as Wuhu): Relying on river-sea combined transportation channels to improve export efficiency, it has channel and hub value for manufacturing enterprises with overseas demand [2].

1. “Headquarters + Base” layout: R&D and headquarters are laid out in cities with dense scientific and educational resources in the downstream and middle reaches, and production and supporting bases are laid out in a gradient in the upstream and transportation hub nodes.
2. Embed green and digital new infrastructure: Focus on green factories and energy-saving transformation, participate in industrial internet, computing power networks and data center projects, and strive to be included in the layout of relevant nodes such as “Eastern Data and Western Computing” [3].
3. Utilize policy and platform elements: Pay attention to mechanisms such as cross-regional factor docking, Regional Factor Coordination Fund, and urban agglomeration collaborative innovation platform, and participate in industrial cultivation in the central and western regions through technical equity participation and joint R&D [3].

[0] 金灵API数据
[1] 财联社 - 国家发改委：持续深入推进区域协调发展 (https://www.cls.cn/detail/2234238)
[2] 新华社/西部网 - “共抓大保护，不搞大开发”，长江经济带十年绘就壮美画卷 (http://news.cnwest.com/szyw/a/2026/01/04/23270600.html)
[3] 中国社会科学杂志社/中国社会科学网 - 准确定位国家战略腹地建设 (https://cssn.cn/skgz/bwyc/202512/t20251209_5954697.shtml)

Note: The above conclusions are based on logical deduction from verifiable clues in public information and do not include specific quantitative return data that has not been verified by sources. If you need it, I can further provide more detailed comparisons and implementation suggestions on industrial policies, key projects and business environments of specific provinces or cities based on available data.