- As the trade tensions between the US and China roll on, one particular Chinese policy is appearing in news reports more frequently.
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Made in China 2025 is a 10-year industrial development plan, but businesses and governments around the world are concerned it will have a dramatic effect on global trade.
Chinese state media has even accused the United States of trying to provoke a trade war in order to undermine the policy.
Ambitious, long-term policy documents don't always attract this much attention, so let's have a look at why this one is different.
What's the plan?
Announced in October 2015, the Made in China 2025 plan is a roadmap for the future of the country's manufacturing sector. It intends to turn China into a manufacturing super power, and Beijing is keen to pour somewhere in the order of $US300 billion into that lofty goal. The plan looks to target emerging industries like robotics, the manufacturing of autonomous and electric cars, artificial intelligence, biotech and aviation.Those industries will be subsidised, handed low-interest loans, rent-free land and tax breaks in order to beat global competitors in the field. Neale O'Connor, an expert on Chinese technology and manufacturing innovation at Monash University's Malaysia Campus, said China hoped to turn itself into a high-end manufacturer with global trade links. -
"There are bold plans not just to dominate the domestic market in China, but actually to be dominant in the world," he said.
"The focus is to help China move from being dependent on international companies and providing low-cost labour to actually becoming an independent and technology-driven economy."
Made in China 2025: Beijing's manufacturing blueprint and why the world is concerned.
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