Density, distance and division: the case of Chongqing municipality, China

This paper analyses the empirical relevance of the 2009 World Development Report’s 3D framework for the explanation of spatial productivity disparities within Chongqing munic-ipality’s non-primary sector. In doing so, it presents evidence of a significant role for distance in determining these disparities, especially within the municipality’s Southeast wing. The evidence of a role for density is more mixed, however, with findings of agglomeration econ-omies depending on the method of estimation used. These results have important policy implications both for the municipality itself and China overall