Comparative Research on the Economic Development of Xinjiang in the Perspective of Development of the West Regions

In the context of Development of the West Regions, by using the annual data from 1999 to 2009 in whole China and 12 provinces of the western regions, we analyze the achievements of socio-economic development of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from 1999 to 2009 as follows: the economic aggregate has increased prominently and the growth rate is increasing ceaselessly; the primary industry, secondary industry and tertiary industry develop evenly, and the industrial structure is incessantly optimized; the quality of economic growth is promoted increasingly and the living standard of people is improved greatly; the primary industry, secondary industry and tertiary industry stride in tandem, and the momentum of growth is strong. We conduct horizontal comparison on me main economic indicators of Xinjiang, 12 provinces of the western regions and whole China. which include GDP and its growth rate. investment of fixed assets. structure of the primary industry. Secondary industry and tertiary industry, the industrial added value, GDP per capita, gross retail sales of social consumption, export and import trade, net income per capita of peasants and herdsmen, and general budget revenue. The result shows that although the implementation of the strategy of Development of the West Regions and the economic development of Xinjiang have achieved some remarkable results, there is a conspicuous gap in comparison with the expected effect. The problems existing in the operation of Xinjiang’s economy are analyzed as follows: the industrial level is low, and the economic growth mode is yet to be transformed; the disposable income per capita of urban residents grows slowly, and the increasing gap between the urban areas and rural areas has no trend of dwindling; the investment aggregate is very low, and the momentum of economic growth is short. In order to make the central government and 19 provinces and cities offer pointed aid for Xinjiang ,promote the implementation of new strategic development of Western China, and promote the better economic development of Xinjiang in the period of the Twelfth Five-Year Plan, we put forward some feasible suggestions as follows: Xinjiang should grasp favorable opportunities and quicken the pace of industrial structural adjustment: continue to open up to the outside world unswervingly, and improve investment environment ceaselessly; strive to maintain the continuous' and rapid development of economy, and improve the living standard of people.