Current Time in Jinhua, China

Jinhua is a prefecture-level city in central Zhejiang Province in eastern China, situated in the Jinhua Basin where the Jinhua River and Wu River meet. With a total population of approximately 5.6 million people, Jinhua is one of the significant inland cities of Zhejiang and is well known for its agricultural products, historical heritage, and growing manufacturing economy.

Jinhua has a history of over two thousand years, having served as an important administrative and cultural center in the Zhejiang region through successive Chinese dynasties. The city was particularly prominent during the Song Dynasty period, when it produced a notable number of literary scholars and officials. The Jinhua area is also historically associated with the Wuzhou culture and has many well-preserved ancient villages and clan buildings in its surrounding counties that reflect centuries of Chinese rural architectural and social tradition.

The city is widely celebrated throughout China and internationally for Jinhua ham, a cured meat product comparable in prestige to Italian prosciutto or Spanish jamon. Jinhua ham has been produced in the region for over a thousand years using traditional curing techniques and is an essential ingredient in Chinese haute cuisine and a valued gift product. The Jinhua Ham Museum tells the full story of this gastronomic tradition, from the raising of Jinhua's distinctive two-spotted pigs to the curing and aging process.

Hengdian World Studios, located in Dongyang under Jinhua's jurisdiction, is one of China's largest and most famous film studio complexes, often called the Hollywood of China. The studios house permanent sets recreating imperial palaces, ancient streets, and historical scenes from various dynasties and have been used in the production of hundreds of Chinese historical drama films and television series. Hengdian has grown into a major tourist attraction with theme parks, hotels, and entertainment facilities.

Jinhua is served by Yiwu Airport in the neighboring city of Yiwu and has high-speed rail connections to Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Wenzhou through the Hangzhou-Ningbo and Hangzhou-Yiwu railway lines. Urban roads and expressways connect the city to its surrounding counties and to major regional hubs.

Jinhua University and several professional colleges serve the educational needs of the city and its surrounding region, with programs in engineering, business, agriculture, and the arts.

Jinhua's combination of culinary fame, remarkable film industry presence, traditional rural architecture, and strategic location in prosperous Zhejiang Province gives it a distinct character among Chinese cities and makes it an increasingly popular destination for culture-oriented travel within China.