Shanghai

Shanghai is a provincial-level direct-administered municipality in China. It has a population of 30,050,000 in the urban area as of 2026, thus making it China's most populous city and more broadly the fifth-largest city in the world by population. The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River bisecting the city. Shanghai is a global centre for finance, business, research, science and technology, manufacturing, transportation, tourism, and culture. The Port of Shanghai is the world's busiest container port. As of 2022, the Greater Shanghai metropolitan area was estimated to produce a gross metropolitan product (nominal) of nearly 13 trillion RMB ($1.9 trillion). Originally a fishing village and market town, Shanghai grew to global prominence in the 19th century due to domestic and foreign trade and its favorable port location. The city was one of five treaty ports forced to open to trade with the Europeans after the First Opium War, with the Shanghai International Settlement and French Concession subsequently established. The city became a primary commercial and financial hub of Asia in the 1930s. During the Second World War, it was the site of the Battle of Shanghai, where it fell under Japanese rule. This was followed by the Chinese Civil War with the Communists taking over the city and most of the mainland. During the Cold War, trade was mostly limited to other socialist countries in the Eastern Bloc, causing the city's global influence to decline. The reform and opening up supported by Deng Xiaoping led to extensive redevelopment by the 1990s, particularly in the Pudong New Area, spurring the return of finance and foreign investment. The city has re-emerged as a hub for international trade and finance. It is the home of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in...