The Northeast was one of the earliest regions to
industrialize in China during the era of
Manchukuo. Many of what became
Chinese state-owned enterprises in the region originated under
Japanese colonialization, particularly in the Manchukuo puppet state. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Northeast China continued to be a major industrial base of the country, and has been hailed as "the Republic's eldest son" (). Recent years, however, have seen the stagnation of Northeast China's heavy-industry-based economy, as China's economy continues to liberalize and privatize; the government has initialized the
Revitalize the Northeast campaign to counter this problem, and established the
Northeast Summit to improve policy coordination and integration. The region has experienced difficulty distancing itself from a planned economy, a legacy that began in 1905 with the establishment of the Japanese
sphere of influence there. The region's once-abundant raw materials have also depleted and the economy has suffered from bureaucratic inefficiency and protectionist politics. The region is, on the whole, more heavily urbanised than most parts of China, largely because it was the first part of the country to develop
heavy industry owing to its abundant coal reserves. Major cities include
Shenyang,
Dalian,
Harbin,
Changchun and
Anshan, all with several million inhabitants. Other cities include the steel making centres of
Fushun and
Anshan in Liaoning,
Jilin City in Jilin, and
Qiqihar and
Mudanjiang in Heilongjiang. Harbin, more than any other city in China, possesses significant Russian influences: there are many Orthodox churches that have fallen out of use since the Cultural Revolution. Shenyang and Dalian, meanwhile, have sizable populations of Japanese and South Koreans due to their traditional linkages. The Northeast is an important
breadbasket region of China, as the
Northeast China Plain has the largest stretch of arable flatland in the country, with an abundance of fertile
black soil. The rural population heavily concentrated in the warmer southern part of the Northeast, where very warm to hot summer weather permits crops such as maize and
millet to be grown with high yields.
Soybeans and
flax are also very important, as are wheat and
barley. The region possesses large flocks of sheep, and pigs are abundant in the more densely settled southern part. The northern half of Heilongjiang is so cold and poorly drained that agriculture is almost impossible; however, the
Amur River provides very rich
fisheries, and sheep are even more abundant than in southern Heilongjiang. Northeast China is the country's traditional
industrial base, focusing mainly on equipment manufacturing. Major industries include the steel,
automobile,
shipbuilding, aircraft manufacturing, and
petroleum refining industries. The
Anshan Iron and Steel Works was the most important industrial enterprise in northeast China until the discovery of the
Daqing Oil Field in 1959. The region supplied many of the staff for the
Third Front Construction of industrial bases in China's interior. In 2023, Heilongjian had the second-lowest GDP per person out of all Chinese provinces. An aging population and the net outward migration of young workers have introduced additional demographic challenges; in 2023, the population in Heilongjian was declining faster than any other province in China. == Culture ==