Foreign shoppers browse toys at the TopToy global flagship store on Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall.
Shanghai's Huangpu District is stepping up efforts to attract foreign investment, international professionals and overseas visitors as part of its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) achievements, local officials announced at a press briefing on Wednesday.
Since 2021, Huangpu has added 30 new regional headquarters of multinational corporations, bringing the total to 83, accounting for 10 percent of the district's tax revenue.
Contracted foreign investment reached US$8.3 billion, according to district Party secretary Gao Yun.
The International Monetary Fund also opened its Shanghai regional center in Huangpu, underscoring the area's role as a global financial hub, said Gao.
To retain global talent, the downtown district established the Bund International Talent Service Center and rolled out policies to ease settlement and entrepreneurship for overseas professionals.
"More than 15,000 professionals have settled in Huangpu over the past five years, including 493 top-level experts. The district also recorded 4,279 foreign work entries," Huangpu director Xu Huili revealed.
She added that 7,700 talent apartments and additional housing resources have been made available to international professionals.
International customers shop at the Miniso Land flagship store on Nanjing Road E.
Tourism and consumption are also being tailored for international visitors.
In 2024, more than 940,000 overseas tourists stayed in Huangpu hotels, up 56 percent year on year.
The district introduced multilingual signage and payment conveniences, including China's first citywide tax refund system and the nation's first self-service machine for departure tax rebates.
Xu said the system issued over 30,000 tax refund slips in the first half of this year, tripling last year's figure.
Cultural exchanges are also flourishing. The Japanese stage production "Spirited Away," for instance, drew more than 78,000 theatergoers in Shanghai this summer, including over 2,000 international ticket buyers.
Beyond its international profile, Huangpu is transforming its urban fabric. The district completed the massive relocation of over 37,000 households in its long-running housing renewal program over the past five years, finishing 13 years ahead of schedule.
Visitors from overseas check out anime figurines and pop-culture merchandise inside TopToy's flagship store.
Renovations include modernizing old residential buildings, adding elevators and creating community parks. Officials said the effort reflects Shanghai's "people-centered urban development" vision.
Huangpu continues to expand its financial clout, with the sector contributing 38.5 percent of district GDP in 2024. The Bund financial zone handled 70 percent of the city's market transactions.
Meanwhile, a new Central Innovation Zone at the former World Expo 2010 site in Puxi is focusing on fintech, robotics and brain-computer interface research, aiming to position Huangpu as a global tech frontier, Gao noted.
The district's iconic commercial zones – Nanjing Road E., Huaihai Road and Yuyuan Garden Malls – are undergoing upgrades to attract young consumers and new global brands.
Since 2021, Huangpu has welcomed 919 flagship and concept stores, the most in the city. The area is also promoting niche markets such as "silver economy" services for seniors and "sweet economy" wedding tourism packages, which blend cultural attractions with consumer experiences.
"We will continue to enhance our role as Shanghai's heart, window and name card to the world," Gao said.
Foreign tourists explore lifestyle goods at the Miniso Land store.