Provincial municipality directly under the central government. , US Eastern Time 1999. : City, 8,937,175; Eastern time in 2000. : municipality directly under the central government,16.74 million), central and eastern regions.
This municipality is located in the East China Sea of China, bordering Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province, with an area of 2,400 square miles (6,200 square kilometers). The city is located on the Huangpu River, which allows ocean-going ships to enter. Shanghai was settled in A.D. 1000. Later, during the Ming Dynasty, it was an area with intensive cotton production. After being defeated by Britain in the Opium War (1842), this situation changed when it became the first China port to open trade with the West. It began to dominate the commerce of this country. The Communist Party of China (CPC), where 192 1 was founded, experienced fierce battles in the Sino-Japanese War of1937–45 and was occupied by Japan in World War II. Since its victory in 1 949, communist party has become a major industrial and commercial center in China and one of the major centers for higher education and scientific research in China.