Staff members work at the Lingang Special Area service center. [Photo by Lyu Liang/For China Daily]

At the end of August, the world's largest asset management group, BlackRock Financial Management, became the first wholly foreign-owned mutual fund in China.

Despite global markets being rattled by the COVID-19 pandemic this year, Pudong still managed to attract $4.69 billion in foreign investment in the first six months, a year-on-year rise of 46.1 percent.

A total of 12 multinational companies set up their regional headquarters in the district during the first half of this year. Pudong is now home to the regional HQs of 344 multinationals, comprising just over 46 percent of the city's total.

In April, Volvo Construction Equipment said it was moving its Asia Pacific headquarters from Singapore to Pudong, which will be the company's largest regional base outside its global headquarters in Sweden. The newly announced Pudong facility will manage more than 50 percent of the company's global business.

Zhan Xu, vice-president of Volvo Construction Equipment China, said the move to Pudong was based on an improved investment environment and systematic innovation in the district, in addition to progress made by China to better its business environment in general.

Pudong's role in the domestic market is also important.

At a symposium in late August, President Xi said full support should be given to the area, as its successful innovative experiences are of strategic importance to the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region, which was elevated to national-strategy level in 2018.

According to Hang Yingwei, governor of Pudong New Area, integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region depends to a large extent on the coordinated support of finance and technologies.

In view of this, in April last year, the local government in Pudong New Area and the Shanghai Stock Exchange jointly founded the Yangtze River Delta region capital market service center.

The center is now linked to more than 120 professional institutions in 28 cities in the region, with the aim of providing IPO, equity and debt financing services for more than 3,000 companies.