For the need of China's hi-tech industrialization development and structural upgrade the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) jointly released Present Hi-tech Industrialization Development Priorities Guidline 2004 aimed at guiding non-governmental investment and accelerating the development of hi-tech industry.

Since 1998 China has been actively pushing forward strategic adjustment of economic structure and has reinforced the guidance and support of hi-tech industry development. According to statistics China's hi-tech industry grew from 1.09 trillion yuan in 1999 to 2.7 trillion yuan in 2003. Hi-tech product export grew from $24.7 billion to $110 billion with annual growth rates of 25.5 percent and 45.3 percent respectively.

During the first five months this year hi-tech industries of scale-above realized a sales revenue of 972.9 billion yuan and an added-value of 239.4 billion yuan, increasing 39.5 percent and 24.7 percent respectively year on year. Of them electronic information product manufacturing industry accounted for 879.1 billion yuan in sales revenue and 186.9 billion yuan in added value, increasing 44.5 percent and 46.8 percent respectively year on year. These were the best levels in recent years. Microcomputer and semiconductor integrated circuit production all grew by 44 percent. Mobile phone production reached 102 million increasing by 50 percent year on year. Hi-tech industry has become an important force in driving the sustained, fast, coordinated and sound development of national economy.

The 2004 Guideline involves 134 hi-tech industrialization priorities of ten kinds including information, biological and new medicine, new material, advanced manufacturing, advanced energy, environmental protection and resources comprehensive utilization, aeronautics and astronautics, agriculture and modern transportation. The NDRC, the MOST and the MOC will also enact respectively short-term policies and measures to promote hi-tech research and development, industrialization and import and export work.

By People's Daily Online