Growth of 8.6%. In the first half of the year, Jiangsu's industrial value added above designated size once again achieved high growth on a high base, 2.6 percentage points higher than the national average.
The impressive data further highlights the role of Jiangsu's industrial economy as a "ballast stone." By deeply promoting new industrialization, creating internationally competitive strategic emerging industry clusters, and advancing the construction of a strong manufacturing province, Jiangsu has solidly built the "foundation" of industry in the first half of the year, helping to promote regional economic growth and the stability of the national industrial market.
Every 40 seconds, a new energy vehicle rolls off the production line; the real-time transmission rate of 6G photonic terahertz communication has increased from 400Gbps to 1Tbps; 10 clusters have been shortlisted for the national advanced manufacturing industry clusters, with the highest number in the country; there are more than 51,000 high-tech enterprises, with a number of significant innovation platforms such as the Purple Mountain Laboratory and the National Third-Generation Semiconductor Technology Innovation Center... These figures intuitively reflect the strong momentum of Jiangsu's industrial economy.
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How has Jiangsu's industrial economy been able to move forward steadily and continuously burst with vitality?
Continuous growth, industrial economy builds a stable economic foundation
In the first half of the year, Jiangsu's GDP grew by 5.8% year-on-year, 0.8 percentage points higher than the national average. Jiangsu's economic increment reached 286.1 billion yuan, ranking first in the country.
The confidence to maintain sustained economic growth comes from the continuous prosperity and strong development of industry. Data from the Jiangsu Provincial Bureau of Statistics show that in the first half of this year, the operation of Jiangsu's industrial economy continued to be better than expected and faster than the national average, with the value added of industrial enterprises above designated size growing by 8.6%, 2.6 percentage points higher than the national average.
Manufacturing constitutes the most important and fundamental part of Jiangsu's industrial economy. Among the major industrial categories, excluding mining and the production and supply of water, electricity, and gas, the rest are classified as manufacturing. Looking at the industry, among the 40 major industrial categories included in the statistics, 33 industries saw an increase in value added, with an industry growth rate of 82.5%. The value added of the equipment manufacturing industry grew by 9.1%, contributing 56.2% to the growth of the total value added of industrial enterprises above designated size; the computer, communication, and other electronic equipment manufacturing industry grew by 13.8%, the automotive manufacturing industry grew by 12.6%, and the railway and shipbuilding industry grew by 11.8%.
The person in charge of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology introduced to the reporter of China Economic Weekly that the steady growth of Jiangsu's industrial economy comes from the support of multiple aspects of momentum.
"The rapid growth of new quality production capacity has become an important driving force." The person in charge of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology said that Jiangsu is fully promoting the strategy of a strong manufacturing province and accelerating the development of new quality production capacity. By implementing the "1650" industrial system (16 advanced manufacturing industry clusters and 50 key industrial chains) to strengthen, supplement, and extend the chain actions and the "Peak Strength Chain" enterprise cultivation plan, focusing on intelligent transformation, digital transformation, and networked connection, the industrial intelligence process is promoted. In the first half of the year, the output value of Jiangsu's industrial strategic emerging industries accounted for 41.3%, which has increased compared to the same period last year.The optimization and upgrading of the industrial structure have also provided strong support for economic growth. The person in charge introduced that Jiangsu has vigorously promoted the rejuvenation of traditional industries and large-scale equipment renewal to ensure the implementation and effectiveness of the "Plan for Promoting Equipment Renewal in the Industrial Field". In the first half of the year, the equipment manufacturing industry maintained high-speed operation, with an increase in value-added of 9.1%, contributing 56.2% to the growth of large-scale industrial enterprises.
In addition, the continuous advancement of industrial science and technology innovation also deserves great credit. Jiangsu has continued to layout and build three types of technological innovation carriers that combine "enterprise technology centers, manufacturing innovation centers, and technological innovation demonstration enterprises"; focusing on key links in key industrial chains, it has supported enterprises to implement collaborative research and development projects from both demand and technology perspectives, breaking through a number of technologies and products with strategic significance. In the first half of the year, the value-added of Jiangsu's high-tech manufacturing industry increased by 8.9% year-on-year, faster than the growth rate of large-scale industrial enterprises, and the output of products such as integrated circuits, mobile phones, and optoelectronic devices also achieved significant growth.
In Nanjing Iron and Steel Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Nanjing Steel"), the traditional production scene of steelworkers sweating profusely in the past has exited the historical stage, replaced by intelligent factories where bright workshops run orderly, tens of thousands of sensors are quietly embedded in production lines, continuously collecting data, and intelligent computing systems fully monitor every process.
"Staff do not need to enter the workshop, just press the remote control to monitor production and operations in real-time. At Jinrun Intelligent Manufacturing Factory, Nanjing Steel has achieved 'smart manufacturing of industrial products like producing consumer goods'." Li Xiaoliang, director of the management office of Nanjing Steel Jinrun Intelligent Manufacturing Factory, told a reporter from China Economic Weekly.
It is reported that since the "14th Five-Year Plan", Nanjing Steel has invested 14.1 billion yuan around high-end, green, and digital intelligence, forming a world-class plate fine base, special steel fine base, composite material base, and national defense equipment material base. It now has 2 national single-champion products, 3 national specialized and new "little giant" enterprises, and 7 provincial specialized and new small and medium-sized enterprises.
Ultra-low temperature (-196°C) 9% nickel steel and high-strength wear-resistant steel have won the national manufacturing single-champion product, providing indispensable key materials for more than 300 major national heavy equipment... Nanjing Steel's transformation and development "butterfly change" has become a vivid portrayal of the "rejuvenation" of traditional industries in Jiangsu.
The person in charge of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology told a reporter from China Economic Weekly that light industry, textile, metallurgy, chemical industry, building materials, machinery processing, etc., are the traditional advantageous industries of Jiangsu Province and also the "basic plate" of the industrial economy. Since last year, Jiangsu has taken the rejuvenation of traditional industries as a key direction for promoting new industrialization, issued the "Plan for the Rejuvenation of Traditional Industries", and deployed five major actions of "eliminating backwardness, updating old and old, green transformation, product upgrading, and layout optimization" to promote the transformation and upgrading of traditional manufacturing industries.
On August 30, the Yangzi Yangba light hydrocarbon comprehensive utilization project was held in the Jiangbei New District of Nanjing. The project and downstream new material projects have a total investment of about 25.652 billion yuan, and the products will be widely used in strategic emerging industries, accelerating the transformation and rejuvenation of the petrochemical industry.
The Yangzi Yangba light hydrocarbon comprehensive utilization and new material project is a major foreign investment project and a major project for the transformation and upgrading of the petrochemical industry in Jiangsu Province during the "14th Five-Year Plan". Among them, the light hydrocarbon comprehensive utilization project is jointly operated by Sinopec and the German BASF Group, building 3 sets of process equipment and supporting facilities such as 1 million tons/year of ethylene.The project has become a key move for Yangzi Petrochemical to shape its new competitive edge in the industry.
"Aiming at the high-end, intelligent, and green direction, Yangzi Petrochemical is currently optimizing its industrial layout comprehensively, accelerating the adjustment of industrial structure and the pace of intelligent manufacturing upgrades, and striving to make the entire industry chain more resilient and competitive," said Gu Yuefeng, Chairman and Party Secretary of Yangzi Petrochemical, to the reporter.
With the rise of industries such as photovoltaics, new energy vehicles, and semiconductors, chemical new materials have become a new blue ocean for development. Yangzi Petrochemical is accelerating the layout of downstream high-end chemical new material production capacity, creating fist-brand products such as metallocene polyethylene and lithium battery separator materials, and actively deploying in new energy fields such as photovoltaic power generation. Through the strategy of "strengthening chains, extending chains, and supplementing chains," Yangzi Petrochemical is moving towards the high-end of the value chain.
Data from the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology shows that in the past year, Jiangsu has recommended the implementation of 1,255 renewal projects such as old and outdated updates, green manufacturing, and service-oriented manufacturing, with a total investment of over 140 billion yuan, organizing the elimination of 28,600 units of old production equipment and the exit of 429 low-quality and low-efficiency enterprises; 34 national green supply chain management companies, 100 green factories, and 13 green industrial parks have been established. Free diagnosis of 510,000 enterprises, promotion of the implementation of 56,000 "smart transformation, digital transformation, and network connection" projects, and a total of 93 characteristic parks have been built... The "industry renewal" work has delivered an impressive "report card."
Clustering momentum, shaping strong industry "hard power"
Promoting "clustered development" of the industry is an important means for Jiangsu to promote new industrialization. A single industrial chain, no matter how complete, cannot support a stable and secure industrial ecosystem, and it is necessary to further strengthen the industrial cluster thinking.
New energy power (new energy) equipment clusters, engineering machinery clusters, internet of things clusters... Jiangsu focuses on the synergy of clusters and chains, and comprehensively strengthens the "1650" industrial system construction.
New energy vehicles are one of the 16 advanced manufacturing clusters that Jiangsu focuses on building. In 2023, Jiangsu's new energy vehicle production reached 1.047 million vehicles, ranking fourth in the country, with power battery production and automotive parts industry scale leading the country.
Jiangsu's new energy vehicle industry system is comprehensive, with more than 3,100 large-scale enterprises, and products covering the entire industry chain. "From small sensors, automotive-grade chips, connectors, to large electric drive systems, power batteries, body structure parts, etc., Jiangsu has high-quality products and is widely supported by mainstream domestic and foreign vehicle manufacturing enterprises," said Zhang Xing, Deputy Director and Party member of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology.
Relying on the complete new energy vehicle supply chain system and scale advantages, enterprises have ushered in new development opportunities.On July 17th, Changan Mazda's first pure electric flagship sedan, the MAZDA EZ-6, officially rolled off the production line in Nanjing. In the future, the company will primarily produce new energy vehicles, with a target of exporting 30,000 electric vehicles annually.
Changan Mazda has 87 suppliers in Jiangsu, accounting for 22% of the national supplier base and 43% of procurement value. On the same day, the new energy vehicle project of Changan Mazda was officially signed and settled. Building on the existing investment of tens of billions of yuan, the joint venture partners announced that they would continue to add another ten billion yuan in research and development investment.
Industrial clustering has made enterprises the direct beneficiaries of "complementing, extending, and strengthening the chain."
Sogou returned to China and settled in Suzhou in 2008. Relying on the resource and policy advantages of the industrial cluster, Sogou was able to grow rapidly. Initially focusing on the development of voice recognition software, in 2013, the company began to enter the field of the Internet of Things. In recent years, the company has ventured into the field of artificial intelligence large models, launching its self-developed conversational language large model DFM-2, which can achieve "flexible customization" of general artificial intelligence.
"Taking the automotive field as an example, currently, Sogou's voice solutions have been installed in over 10 million vehicles, partnering with nearly 60 automotive brands, and empowering nearly 200 mass-produced models," Sogou's Secretary Long Mengzhu told a reporter from China Economic Weekly.
Not only has the new energy vehicle cluster created a new "automotive" momentum. In the first half of the year, Jiangsu Province's high-tech ships and offshore engineering equipment, new generation information communication, semiconductors, high-end textiles, new-type power equipment, and aerospace, among six clusters, achieved double-digit growth.
Enterprises are honing their internal skills, and the government is providing protection.
It is reported that looking to the future, the "Fifteenth Five-Year" plan for high-quality development of Jiangsu's manufacturing industry is in the process of being compiled. Centered around basically building a strong manufacturing province and creating an important position for the development of new quality productive forces, the plan systematically plans the goals and tasks for Jiangsu's industrial development during the "Fifteenth Five-Year" period.