Firms on the Shanghai STAR Market see significant rise in patents

Listed firms in the Shanghai STAR Market have applied for 9.3 percent more patents year on year as of September, while new listed firms have gained more invention patents, representing technological advancement in the innovation-oriented board, a research report said.

By the end of the third quarter, 473 STAR-listed firms have applied for a total of 167,000 patents, or an average of 354 patents by each firm, compared with the average of 324 patents applied for a year ago, according to PatSnap, which studies patent data and provides consultation services.

The overall patent capacity of STAR-listed companies is on the rise. Especially the average of invention patents, with its volume significantly increasing, PatSnap said.

As of September, each STAR-listed firm had 102 invention patents on average, compared with 92 a year ago. In the third quarter, each of the 42 newly listed firms had 110 invention patents on average, representing growing tech innovations across the board.

"Hard technologies," or advanced technologies and strategic emerging industries, have become a major feature of the STAR Market, the Shanghai Bourse said.

Since its debut on July 22, 2019, the tech-heavy board has gradually grown into a testing ground for systematic breakthroughs in the capital market, with various innovations and upgrades of systems taken step by step.

Among STAR-listed firms, the industries with most patents are next-generation information technology, high-end device manufacturing and biomedicine.

The top three regions with the most patents are Guangdong Province, Jiangsu Province and Shanghai, according to PatSnap.