China pushing development of new technology

China is pushing development of 5G, new-energy cars and chip industries to boost innovation and transform the economy, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

They have provided strong support for “stable and healthy development” of the economy, said Xiao Yaqing, the minister.

China’s industrial GDP grew to 31.3 trillion yuan (US$4.89 trillion) from 23.5 trillion yuan in the past five years and China has been the world’s largest manufacturing country for 11 consecutive years, the ministry said in a conference broadcast online on Monday.

By last year, China had more than 718,000 5G base stations with 200 million 5G connections. The country’s mobile penetration rate hit 108 percent and its family broadband network penetration rate reached 96 percent. 

China will continue to support the chip industry with tax cuts and special support in sectors such as semiconductor materials, equipment and key technologies, Xiao said.

In 2020, China’s integrated circuit industry revenue hit 884.8 billion yuan, with a 20 percent growth, triple the global industry growth rate, according to the ministry.

In recent years, China has released 60 policies to support new-energy cars. In 2020, China’s new-energy car sales grew 10.9 percent year on year.