Administrative Division

　　Tianjin comprises 13 districts—Heping, Hebei, Hedong, Hexi, Nankai, Hongqiao, Dongli, Xiqing, Jinnan, Beichen, Wuqing, Baodi and Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA), and 3 counties—Jixian, Jinghai and Ninghe.

　　Geographical Location

　　Located at about 39°N and 117°E, Tianjin is within the GMT+8 time zone. Surrounded by the ancient Huangyaguan Pass in Jixian County to the north, the Canglang Canal in Dagang District to the south, the Ganqu Canal in Hangu District to the east and the Tande Trunk Canal in Jinghai County to the west, the city extends 189 km in length and 117 km in width, occupying a total area of 11,946 square kilometers. Tianjin has 153 km of sea borderline and 1,290 km of land borderline, totaling 1,137.48 km.

　　Tianjin finds itself in the northeastern North China Plain and the center of the Bohai Bay, bordering on the sea to the east and the Yanshan mountain range to the north. Spaced 120 km from Beijing, it serves as a gateway to the grand capital. As the largest coastal open city in the North China, the city has an influence radiating to 13 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in the northern hinterland and the Northeast Asia.

　　Today’s Tianjin enjoys a highly developed network of air, land and sea transports. Prior to the founding of Tianjinwei (Fortress of Tianjin), an inland river port was built here along the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal; later in 1860 it was opened as a commercial port to the world. By far, Tianjin has maintained trade ties with over 500 ports in 180 countries and regions, and it is the nearest eastern start of the Eurasian Continental Bridge. In 2011 Tianjin Port claimed a cargo throughput of 453 million and a container throughput of 11.59 million TEU, thereby edging into the global top ten.

　　Population Density

　　By the end of 2012, the number of Tianjin residents reached over 14 million, with an increase of about 585,700 compared to the same period of the previous year. The total population included some 3.9 million of migrants, up by about 479,500, and some 9.9 million of permanent residents, of whom some 6.2 million are non-rural with the rest being rural.

　　Natural Resources

　　By far, over 30 kinds of resources have been verified in Tianjin, including fuel and minerals that are both metallic and nonmetallic. In 2003 its mineral reserve was estimated to worth RMB 154 billion. Tianjin has more than 10 kinds of metallic minerals, including gold, tungsten, molybdenum, cuprum, zinc iron as well as jimboite and manganese that are the first to be found in China.

　　Tianjin's nonmetallic minerals include limestone, barite, stromatolite, marble, natural stone and medical stone. It has metallic and nonmetallic minerals scattered in the mountainous areas in its north, and fuels in the plain and the continental shelf of the Bohai Bay, including petroleum, natural gas and coal. The Dagang Oilfield and Bohai Oilfield in the southeast of the city are of great commercial values.

　　The explored reserves of oil and natural gas in the Bohai Bay reach 4 billion tons and 150 billion cubic meters respectively. The Jibao Coalfield to the north of the city has a 30-odd-meter coal bed and a storage of over 300 million tons, occupying an area of 80 square kilometers.

　　Tianjin's plain area abounds in geothermal resources that are characterized by their shallow depth and quality water. Among the 10 geothermal anomalous areas discovered, 4 have been explored to store water exceeding 3 billion cubic meters, the largest among their counterparts in China.

　　In 2004, Tianjin's water supply totaled 2.206 billion cubic meters, of which surface water accounted for 1.489 billion (including 337 million diverted from the Luanhe River and 312 million from the Yellow River), groundwater 707 million, recycled sewage water 8 million and desalinated seawater 2 million. By the end of 2004, the total storage of the large and medium-sized reservoirs was 812 million cubic meters.

　　Climate Conditions

　　Located in the temperate monsoon climate zone, Tianjin has distinguished seasons and a climate that is semi-arid and semi-humid. In winter days, the northwest wind prevails in the city, making the air cold and dry; yet its summer, as is influenced by the subtropical anticyclone, is high in temperature and humidity, with rainfall and south wind appearing frequently. Its spring and autumn both feature the transition of monsoon. Thus its spring is dry and windy with frequent temperature changes, and its autumn is cool and fair. The city is mainly subject to the continental climate, but under the influence of the Bohai Sea its coastal areas occasionally show signs of the oceanic climate.