Disneyland set to open in China

The Shanghai municipal government is expected to approve the US$3.6 billion (£2.2bn or HKD27.8bn) Disney theme park project this week, according to Mayor Han Zheng.

With the on-going trade discussions between China and the USA, some commentators have suggested that an official announcement would be made to coincide with President Barack Obama’s visit to China November later this month.

If the plans go ahead, Shanghai will become the 6th Disneyland theme park, with others existing in California, Orlando, Tokyo, Paris and Hong Kong. Shanghai has been pushing for a world-class amusement park for almost ten years and faced huge challenges when Hong Kong Disneyland opened back in 2005.

Shanghai’s economy grew by 3.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2009; a relatively low rate compared to China’s overall projected growth rate of over 8% for the year. China is determined to conduct an economic transformation and sees the service sector as the backbone of the Shanghai’s economic development.