SCIO briefing on development of industry and information technology in the first quarter of 2025

China Securities Journal:

My questions are regarding the equipment manufacturing industry. Can you introduce the performance of China's equipment manufacturing industry in the first quarter? In which fields have there been new highlights and breakthroughs? Going forward, what measures will be taken to further support the high-quality development of the equipment manufacturing industry? Thank you.

Xie Shaofeng:

Thank you for your questions. I would like to invite Ms. Tao to answer your questions.

Tao Qing:

Thank you for your questions. In the first quarter of this year, driven by relevant policies such as special actions to boost consumption, and policies such as the expansion of the "two new" initiatives of equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-ins, the domestic demand potential of industries such as new energy vehicles and intelligent manufacturing equipment was further stimulated. China's equipment manufacturing industry sustained upward momentum of recovery and growth since last year, achieving a good start that can be characterized as "steady growth across industry as a whole, with highlights in various sub-sectors."

In terms of the overall industry, both production and sales are stable, with steady business expectations. On one hand, the production and sales of key products have been steadily increasing. In the first quarter, nearly 70% of key products in the equipment manufacturing industry achieved growth, with the proportion reaching 69.2%, an increase of 16.7 percentage points compared to the same period last year. The production and sales of bulk commodities such as automobiles have continued to improve, reaching 7.561 million and 7.47 million units respectively, with increases of 14.5% and 11.2% year on year. Among them, the production and sales of new energy vehicles reached 3.182 million and 3.075 million units respectively, with increases of 50.4% and 47.1% year on year. The production of industrial robots and service robots reached 149,000 sets and 2.604 million sets, up 26% and 20% year on year, respectively. In addition, investment in key industries has been steadily increasing. In the first quarter, the investment growth rate and private investment growth rate of three key industries, namely general equipment manufacturing, automobile manufacturing, and railway, ship, aerospace and other transportation equipment manufacturing, all reached about 20%, indicating that business expectations are very stable. At the same time, thanks to the expansion of the policies concerning equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-ins, the purchase investment of equipment and tools in the industrial field increased by 16.3% year on year, 7.2 percentage points higher than the growth rate for the whole of last year.

From the perspective of sub-sectors, the development of land, sea, air and electric equipment manufacturing has continued to improve, and the intelligent equipment industry has been developing rapidly. In the low-altitude equipment manufacturing industry, as of now, 716 companies have completed registration in the civil unmanned aerial vehicle product information system, with 2,327 registered products and more than 2.91 million units. The world's first four-seat electric aircraft has been awarded the type certificate by the Civil Aviation Administration of China. In the shipbuilding industry, key shipbuilding enterprises have been performing well and are basically operating at full capacity. The overall construction progress of the second domestically built large cruise ship, the Adora Flora City, has exceeded 65% and will soon undergo its first dock floating. In the power equipment manufacturing industry, from January to February, the total installed power generation capacity nationwide reached 3.4 billion kilowatts, up 14.5% year on year, of which the installed wind power capacity was 530 million kilowatts, up 17.6% year on year. The intelligently connected new energy vehicle industry has been developing rapidly, with the average driving range of vehicles approaching 500 kilometers. The fast-charging technology that charges a battery to 80% in 15 minutes has achieved mass production and deployment. The pilot program for market access and on-road operation of intelligently connected vehicles is progressing in an orderly manner. New-generation intelligent equipment such as intelligent robots has been continuously developing and growing. The application of mobile manipulator robots in manufacturing processes of sectors such as aerospace, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals has exceeded 1,000 units. Explosion-proof industrial robots have obtained domestic and international explosion-proof certifications and have achieved large-scale application in the manufacturing of rail transit equipment and automobiles.

Next, we will implement the decisions and plans of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, and continue to promote the high-quality development of the equipment industry with the focus on stabilizing growth, addressing weaknesses and promoting transformation. In terms of stabilizing growth, we will focus on introducing new rounds of work plans for stabilizing growth in the three industries of machinery, automobiles and power equipment, promoting technological transformation and equipment renewal in key industries, and expanding effective demand in all aspects through coordinated efforts between both supply and demand sides. In terms of addressing weaknesses, we will thoroughly implement the campaigns of "Machine Tool Plus," and "Robots Plus," and further promote high-end medical equipment supply-demand matchmaking and application, continuously enhancing the resilience and security of industrial and supply chains in key areas. In terms of promoting transformation, we will focus on introducing implementation plans for the digital transformation of related industries, promoting the deep integration and application of new technologies such as AI with equipment products, continuously enhancing the supply and support capacity of high-quality equipment. Thank you.