The virtual water trade as a strategy to solve the problem of water resources in dryland has been paid more and more attention. The quantization of virtual water trade patterns and the analysis of driving factors of virtual water chang is a breakthrough new idea of water management.Taking Jiangsu Provice for example,this paper first used input-output model to calculate the outflow of virtual water in 21 industries of Jiangsu Province from 1997 to 2010 and analyzed the current virtual water trade pattern of Jiangsu Province,and then used the method of Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index to analyze the driving factors and contribution rate of virtual water change.The results show that industrial virtual water trade of Jiangsu Province is the biggest part of the whole virtual water trade and accounts for the highest proportion of total virtual water exports,and is the important factor the whole virtual water trade change;the contribution rate of scale factor to the increase of virtual water trade has decreased gradually.The contribution rate of technology to the reduce of virtual water trade has strengthened gradually. Acknowledging the pattern of virtual water trade and implementing virtual water strategy is one of important ways to achieve optimal allocation of water resources in the region and can offer a new perspective for Jiangsu Province to ease water conflicts and solve water shortage crisis.