Industrial Economy in China Shows Positive Growth in Third Quarter of 2023: Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
October 20, 2023 – Today, the State Council Information Office held a press conference to announce the positive development of China’s industry and information technology sector in the third quarter of 2023. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology reported that the country’s industrial economy operated smoothly, with an optimized industrial structure.
Based on key economic indicators, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 4% year-on-year in the first three quarters of this year. This growth rate accelerated by 0.2 percentage points compared to the first half of the year, indicating an improvement in corporate efficiency. Notably, profits of industrial enterprises above designated size rose by 17.2% year-on-year in August, demonstrating a significant turnaround from negative to positive operating income and profits.
In terms of high-quality manufacturing development, investment in high-tech manufacturing increased by 11.3% year-on-year in the first three quarters, surpassing the growth rate of overall manufacturing investment by 5.1 percentage points. China has focused on cultivating new products, new industries, and new business formats, leading to rapid growth in sectors such as new energy vehicles, photovoltaic products, and aerospace vehicles and equipment. The shipbuilding industry also continued to lead the world with strong performance. Additionally, nearly 10,000 digital workshops and smart factories have been established, showcasing remarkable achievements in intelligent manufacturing and improving industry efficiency.
The information and communication industry also experienced steady growth, with a total of 3.189 million 5G base stations built and 145 million Gigabit broadband users as of the end of September. 5G applications have been integrated into 67 major categories of the national economy. Moreover, there are over 7,000 “5G + Industrial Internet” projects nationwide, and the cumulative number of mobile IoT terminals has reached 2.22 billion. The aging-appropriate transformation of more than 140 million smartphones and smart TVs has been completed.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) also showed signs of recovery and improvement. Several key economic performance indicators for SMEs rebounded in the first three quarters. China has successfully nurtured 103,000 specialized, special, and innovative SMEs, along with 12,000 specialized, special, and innovative “little giant” enterprises. Furthermore, 200 characteristic industrial clusters of SMEs played a crucial role in strengthening and replenishing supply chains.
The production and sales of new energy vehicles experienced significant growth of more than 30% year-on-year in the first three quarters. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology confirmed that China’s new energy vehicle industry has maintained a strong development momentum. The output and sales of new energy vehicles expanded, with sales accounting for 29.8% of total vehicle sales.
Technologically, China has achieved a significant milestone by producing large-scale power battery cells with an energy density of 300 watt-hours per kilogram. The average driving range of pure electric passenger vehicles has exceeded 460 kilometers. Moreover, domestic market sales of self-owned brand new energy passenger vehicles accounted for 80.2%, and exports of new energy vehicles increased by 1.1 times, reaching 825,000 units.
To support new energy vehicles, China has built 6.278 million charging piles, 3,460 battery swap stations, and over 10,000 power battery recycling service outlets. In the field of intelligent connected vehicles, China has established more than 20,000 kilometers of test roads, accumulating a total test mileage of over 70 million kilometers.
In the forthcoming period, China plans to further expand the domestic market and carry out city-level “vehicle-road-cloud integration” demonstrations. The country will step up efforts to improve the power battery recycling system and accelerate the formulation and revision of standards for electric vehicles, power battery safety, autonomous driving, and operating systems.
The positive growth and advancements in China’s industry and information technology sector indicate a strong foundation for the country’s economic development and innovation. Wu Jiahong served as the editor for this article.