The Jing-Jin-Ji cluster is an expanded urban agglomeration consisting of Beijing (Jing), Tianjin (Jin), and Hebei (Ji). It is the biggest urban agglomeration region in North China, including an economic region surrounding the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin, and along the coast of the Bohai Sea. This emerging region is rising as a northern metropolitan region rivaling the Pearl River Delta in the south and the Yangtze River Delta in the east. In 2020, it had a total population of 110 million people, comparable to that of the Philippines.
As of 2024, the region's GDP is CNÃÂ¥11.54 trillion (US$1.62 trillion), equivalent to that of Spain. It occupied an area about twice the size of South Korea. Jingjinji had traditionally been involved in heavy industries and manufacturing. Tianjin's strengths have always been in aviation, logistics, and shipping. Beijing complements this economic activity with strong petrochemical, education, and R&D industries. The area is becoming a significant growth cluster for automobile, electronics, petrochemical sectors, automotive industry, software and aircraft, thus attracting foreign investments in manufacturing and health services.
The Chinese central government has made it a priority to integrate all the cities in the Bohai Bay rim and foster economic development. This includes building an advanced communications network, better highways, increased education, and scientific resources, as well as tapping natural resources off the Bohai rim. In 2016, the Central Government approved a US$36-billion plan to link the various cities making up this metropolis by rail in order to reduce commute times and to better integrate them. This plan includes the construction of nine railways that are in length, which are set to be completed by 2020. The long-term goal is to create a one-hour commuting region; an additional 24 intercity railways are planned to be built before 2050.
In recent decades, petroleum and natural gas deposits have been discovered in the Jingjinji region's coast of the Bohai sea.
In 2013-2014, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Xi Jinping gave directives on coordinating development in the region, elevating development strategies in the region to be a national priority. In particular, planning strategies sought to alleviate development pressure in Beijing. The desire to alleviate the development pressure of Beijing's increasing non-capital functions was formalized in the June 2015 Outline Plan for Coordinated Development of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and subsequently resulted in the establishment of Xiong'an. Xiong'an is where Beijing's non-capital functions, such as universities, research institutes, and high-tech innovation centers are planned to be transferred over time.
Jingjinji includes the Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei provinces. Major cities in these municipalities and provinces include:
There are many major highways servicing the routes within Jingjinji area. This includes the following expressways:
The following six China National Highways pass through Tianjin: