The State Council of China recently issued its first mid- and long-term plan for the entire industrial sector, the Industrial Transformation and Upgrade Plan (2011-2015). The Plan is an important step, and the highest level guideline, for the Chinese government to carry out the industrial development goals and tasks set out in China’s National Economic and Social Development 12th Five-Year Plan, covering the period 2011-2015 (see the April 2011 issue of the Trade and Manufacturing Alert).

The Plan indicates that the focus of China’s industrial development over the next five years is to transform China’s extensive development pattern to a new model driven by technological innovation and domestic demand and consumption, with an emphasis on environmental protection, intelligent manufacturing, and manufacturing services. Additionally, the Plan calls for fully optimizing China’s industrial, technological, product, and organizational structures, as well as its industrial geographic distribution. The Plan continues to emphasize the significance of cultivating and expanding the strategic emerging industries (i.e., energy-saving and environment protection industries, the new-generation information technology industry, the biology industry, the high-end equipment manufacturing industry, the new energy industry, the new materials industry, and the new-energy automotive industry, as reported in the January 2011 Trade & Manufacturing Alert), as well as upgrading traditional industries and developing services industries.

Please see full alert below for more information.