On July 18th, the Information Office of the State Council held a press conference to introduce the development of industry and information technology in the first half of 2025. Xie Shaofeng, the chief engineer of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Tao Qing, the spokesperson of the Ministry and director of the Department of Operation Monitoring and Coordination, and Xie Cun, director of the Department of Information and Communication Development, attended the conference to introduce the relevant situation and answer questions from journalists.
China Media Group
Data shows that the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 6.4% year-on-year in the first half of the year, maintaining a stable operation. How do you view the current industrial economic situation? What measures will be taken next to promote industrial economic growth? thank you.
Xie Shaofeng
Thank you for your question. This year, we have thoroughly implemented policies and measures to stabilize employment and the economy, as well as those related to the "two priorities" and "two new" initiatives. We have worked in coordination with various regions to intensify efforts in policy support, project implementation, supply-demand matching, and business assistance services. By leveraging the strengths of China's industrial economy, which is characterized by a solid foundation, strong resilience, and vigorous innovation, we have achieved stable operation. In the first and second quarters, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 6.5% and 6.3% respectively year-on-year, achieving further growth despite the high base of the same period last year.
Next, we will continue to make sustained efforts and persevere in the long term in consolidating the foundation, improving quality, fostering growth drivers and optimizing the environment. We will focus on the following key areas of work.
The first is to consolidate the foundation of the industrial economy.
Second, efforts should be made to enhance the quality of development.
Third, we will continue to foster new drivers of growth. We will implement major national science and technology projects and key national research and development plans, carry out special actions, and cultivate new industries and new growth drivers. We will accelerate the development of bio-manufacturing and low-altitude industries. We will promote the innovative development of future industries such as humanoid robots, the metaverse, and brain-computer interfaces, and make forward-looking arrangements in new fields and new tracks.
Fourth, we will continue to optimize the development environment.
Cover News
Traditional industries are the focus of the transformation and upgrading of manufacturing. We have noted that the State Council's executive meeting recently reviewed and approved the "Action Plan for Green and Low-Carbon Development of Manufacturing (2025-2027)". Could you please tell us what work the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has done to promote the green transformation of traditional industries and how it will ensure the implementation of the plan in the next step? thank you.
Tao Qing
Thank you for your question. Green development is the foundation for high-quality development in manufacturing, and traditional industries are the focus of manufacturing transformation and upgrading. Recently, the State Council's executive meeting reviewed and approved the "Action Plan for Green and Low-Carbon Development in Manufacturing (2025-2027)", emphasizing the need to promote in-depth green transformation of traditional industries. By combining policies such as large-scale equipment renewal, advanced equipment and processes should be actively applied to accelerate the green transformation and upgrading of key industries.
To implement the requirements of the Action Plan, we will prioritize the deep green transformation of traditional industries, focusing on four key sectors: steel, non-ferrous metals, petrochemicals and chemical engineering, and building materials. We will make efforts in four aspects: raw materials, energy consumption, processes, and products, to fully tap the potential for green and low-carbon development in traditional industries and promote their "green expansion and efficiency increase".
In terms of expanding the use of green raw materials, the focus is on increasing the proportion of recycled resources such as scrap steel, scrap copper, and scrap aluminum in raw materials. The goal is to raise these proportions to 22%, 30%, and 25% respectively by 2027. Using recycled resources as raw materials offers significant energy-saving and carbon-reduction advantages compared to primary mineral resources. For instance, the energy consumption for recycling aluminum is only 5% to 8% of that for primary aluminum production, and greenhouse gas emissions are approximately 5% of those from primary aluminum.
In terms of expanding the use of green energy, accelerating the application of hydrogen in traditional industries is an important direction. At the beginning of this year, we jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for Accelerating the Application of Clean and Low-Carbon Hydrogen in the Industrial Sector" with the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration. The plan focuses on the application of clean and low-carbon hydrogen in industries such as metallurgy, ammonia synthesis, methanol synthesis, and oil refining, and aims to accelerate the realization of large-scale breakthroughs.
In terms of expanding the application of green processes, the focus is on accelerating the research and development of innovative processes in traditional industries to fundamentally address the bottlenecks that restrict the green and low-carbon development of these industries.
In terms of expanding the supply of green products, the focus is on providing new materials and products with significant green and low-carbon effects for all sectors of the economy and society. For instance, in the building materials industry, energy-saving glass, new insulation materials, and new wall materials are promoted; in the petrochemical and chemical industry, water-based coatings, inks, and adhesives are promoted.
