Made in China 2025: A success

10 years ago, China unveiled an ambitious initiative titled ‘Made in China 2025’, also known as MIC 2025. The plan’s goal was to turn the Chinese economy, which was synonymous with cheap low-value manufacturing, into a self-reliant innovation hub by 2025. At the time, the majority of the world was skeptical and undervalued China’s attempt.

Since then, a decade has passed and the deadline is just around the corner. It’s time to see if China really succeeded in climbing up the global value chain. Let’s take a look at the target sectors of the MIC 2025 and where China stands today in each sector.

Note: For achievements in each sector, I referred to China’s comparative advantage to the rest of the world, namely the US, analyzed by Fathom Consulting.

Railway equipment (Global powerhouse)

China has become a global front-runner in high-speed rail. Chinese companies are pushing other players out of their domestic market and becoming a transportation powerhouse.

Ocean engineering and high-end vessels (Global powerhouse)

China is the world’s largest shipbuilder, building nearly half of global gross tonnage. Now they are trying to strengthen technologies for intelligent ships.

Information Technology (Closing the gap)

China is experiencing rapid deployment of new information technologies such as 5G, AI, blockchain, and e-commerce. The chips industry remains the last hurdle that China is yet to overcome, but there are signals that the gap is closing.

Green energy (Closing the gap)

China is dominating the green industry across the entire value chain. Over 50% of renewable energy is generated by China. China is also at the forefront of the EV industry and posing a serious challenge to Tesla.

Robotics (Closing the Gap)

China accounted for 51 percent of global industrial root installations in 2023. They are expanding the implementation of unmanned industrial, commercial, and military systems at an astonishing pace that no other country is even close to.

New materials (Closing the gap)

China has significantly expanded its capabilities in the new materials industry, experiencing substantial growth in production capacity and output value, particularly in areas like carbon fiber composites, silicon nitride ceramics, lithium battery separators, and advanced glass materials.

Agriculture machinery (Closing the gap)

China has achieved a high level of mechanization. It is the major exporter of agricultural equipment.

Aerospace (Kickstarting transformation)

Chinese-made C919 jets are now operational in China. However, they remain heavily dependent on imported parts.

Medical devices (Kickstarting transformation)

China is making advances in medical devices and patient aids. Many people predict that China’s medical science capability will be improved at a stunning pace when AI and robotics are integrated into medical fields.

China is taking the lead in almost all industries highlighted in the MIC 2025. They succeeded in comprehensively upgrading the Chinese industry.

At the recent national technology conference in June, China announced that it targets to become a tech superpower by 2035. China didn’t give it a fancy name, but it’s clear that they are moving on to the next chapter, another 10-year plan.