China’s Slowdown Casts Pall Over Xi’s Yangtze Delta Project

The Yangtze River Delta has long been one of China’s richest regions, with fertile fishing grounds and rice paddies that have given way to a sprawling megalopolis that includes Shanghai. President Xi Jinping has been trying for years to turn the area into an even bigger economic powerhouse, hoping to create a Silicon Valley of the East.

The country’s economic slowdown, driven in part by tensions with the US and a slumping property market, is now starting to weigh on the project. Plans include an expanded high-speed rail network and a $2.6 billion artificial canal town meant to symbolize its eco-friendly ambitions. While few would dispute that the region remains a key economic driver, even Xi’s goal of creating a more efficiently-run economic bloc and high-tech arcadia hasn’t been spared the impact of the recent uncertainties.