On May, 7, 1986,Tianjin and Chiba became sister cities. Chiba is located between Tokyo and Narita International Airport. The area is about 272.08 square kilometers with a total population of 961,544(2008 census). Chiba City became a government designated city in 1992 and has six wards. In order to change the situation of over-concentrative industrial and commercial activity, Chiba City was listed in one of the business core cities. Chiba City is a superior seaside city as well as a port city. Chiba seaside city is the origin of information. There are masses of all kinds of information establishments. It has the best comprehensive international meeting center which is named Makuhari Messe. There are 72,000 square meters for exhibiting. Such center is infrequent even in Japan. International trade meetings and other international meetings are held in here. Chiba-Makuhari is a new-type of economic zone. After twenty years of construction, it has already become a large-scale, modernized industrial and commercial region. It has attracted many big financial groups and enterprises to invest here. Now it is the important economic pillar of Chiba. Chiba port is also one of the Kant¨ region's primary seaports, and it is famous for its freight handling capacity, which is among the highest ones in Japan. It mainly exports handling machineries, steels, chemical medicines and heavy oil. The top four produce that it import are petroleum products, crude oil, iron ores and coal. The countries which have trade exchanges with Chiba City are all over the world. Chiba is famous for the Chiba Urban Monorail, the longest suspended monorail in the world, as published in the Guinness Book of World Records. On air, Narita International Airport and Tokyo International Airport are the closest major airports. |
