Current Time in Wafangdian, China

Wafangdian lies in the north-east of China, on the western side of the Liaodong peninsula in Liaoning province, about a hundred kilometres north of the port city of Dalian, to which it administratively belongs. The city faces the shallow waters of the Bohai Sea, and its territory rises inland to wooded hills and the ridges of the Qianshan range. Winters are long, dry and cold with strong north-westerly winds, while summers are warm and humid, moderated near the coast by sea breezes.

The city district holds close to a million people, with several hundred thousand in the built-up centre. Wafangdian is best known throughout China as the country's bearing capital. The first modern bearing factory in China was established here in 1938, and the industry that grew from it still dominates the local economy, supplying rolling bearings to railways, wind turbines, mining machinery and heavy industry across the country and abroad. Machinery, textiles, building materials and food processing complete the industrial picture.

Agriculture is equally important. The hills and coastal plains around the city form one of the leading fruit-growing districts of northern China, famous above all for apples, along with pears, peaches, grapes and cherries. Aquaculture and fishing along the Bohai coast produce shellfish, sea cucumber and prawns that reach markets throughout the region.

The area has a long history. It formed part of the ancient Liaodong commandery, and the nearby old town of Fuzhou was a walled administrative centre for centuries; a brick pagoda from the Liao dynasty still stands as a reminder of that period. In modern times the peninsula was fought over by Russia and Japan, and the railway built during the Russian concession gave the settlement of Wafangdian its start as a station town at the end of the nineteenth century. Industrial development after 1949 turned it into the manufacturing city it is today.

Visitors come for the hot springs and forest scenery of Buyun Mountain, a resort area of wooded slopes, streams and spas that is popular in every season, and for Longtan Mountain with its walking trails and temples. The coast offers quiet beaches, tidal flats rich in birdlife and seafood restaurants, and the great nuclear power station at Hongyanhe, the first in the region, stands on the shoreline nearby.

Local life follows the pattern of north-eastern China, with a strong tradition of hearty food, dumplings, seafood and pickled vegetables, lively night markets in summer, and folk arts including the drum and stilt dances of the region. Parks, sports centres and a museum serve residents, and vocational and technical colleges linked to the bearing and machinery industries train the local workforce.

Transport is excellent. The Harbin to Dalian high-speed railway stops here, putting Dalian within half an hour and Shenyang within two, and expressways run the length of the peninsula to the port and its international airport.

Wafangdian is important as an industrial specialist whose bearings turn machines worldwide, and as a coastal fruit-growing district with hot springs and hills that attract visitors from the big cities nearby.