(Yicai Global) Sept. 23 -- Some 44 Shanghai government-owned companies have extended their investment in Lingang New Area as they look to settle in the latest extension of the city's free trade zone.

Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, logistics firm Donghao Lansheng Group, and Shanghai Construction Group are among the companies to recently pen investment deals with the management committee of Lingang and Shanghai Lingang Economic Development Group. Shanghai Electric, one of the first firms to enter the region, is investing more than CNY7 billion (USD1 billion) to build a base in the region focused on nuclear power, marine crankshafts, auxiliary power systems and wind turbines.

SPDB plans to use its expertise in corporate, retail and financial markets to offer stocks, bonds, loans and other innovative financial products to Shanghai SOEs in high-quality packages, said Ren Jun, general manager of the lender's international business arm.

Local rival Bank of Shanghai will work with strategic shareholders, including Shanghai International Port Group and Santander Bank, to prioritize the research of financial products in line with Lingang's development direction to better position its offerings, said Huang Tao, a vice president at the firm.

Donghao subsidiary Shanghai Foreign Service Group, the local regional development group's human resourcing partner, also plans to roll out hiring, tax and welfare services geared toward international workers, said the unit's President Gao Yaping.

"We will make use of advantages in global talent channels in the integrated circuits, artificial intelligence, biomedicine and civil aviation sectors, among other key fields," he added, saying the firm will provide targeted services aimed at bringing in high-level foreign talent to turn Lingang into a globally influential landmark for international talent services.

Editor: James Boynton