Industrial parks in Yantai, Shandong province [Photo/ytsk.com]

Yantai's opening up efforts have been bolstered by the city's flourishing industrial parks active in foreign trade such as the Yantai Area of the China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone and the Sino-South Korea Industrial Park, said Zhang Shuping, Party secretary of Yantai and also a NPC deputy, during the third session of the 13th National People's Congress on May 22.

In light of the ongoing fight against COVID-19 around the world, more efforts should be made to promote the signing of the regional comprehensive economic partnership (RCEP) and advance economic and trade cooperation among China, Japan and South Korea, Zhang added.

Yantai boasts great potential in opening up. The utilization of contract capital outside the city reached 165.2 billion yuan ($23.12 billion) in the first quarter of the year, up 55.2 percent year-on-year. A total of 61 projects, each worth over 1 billion yuan, have been inked in Yantai.