Kaohsiung says it has pulled in more than NT$2.7 trillion of business investment since 2020, good news for the city's workers and for Taiwan's push to spread chip and tech industry beyond the north.

• Six new industrial parks and 710 hectares of new industrial land have been opened up to house the money coming in.
• Jobs at the city's three science parks jumped from 8,600 to over 20,000, faster growth than Hsinchu, Taichung or Tainan.
• Household income is rising faster than in any of Taiwan's other five big cities, and unemployment is the lowest.
• Old heavy-industry firms are moving up the chain — a hardware parts maker now supplies AI server components, and a petrochemical company is spending more to make ultra-pure chemicals for chip plants.
• Taiwan's first Asian asset management hub opened in the city, and finance and insurance revenue grew fastest among the six cities.

Outlook: Mayor Chen Chi-mai says the city is on the right track but has to move faster to keep up with global competition, so expect more park expansions and incentives aimed at chip and finance firms.