The manufacturing industry will continue to be a cornerstone of the national economy after the country enters the World Trade Organization.

Long-term plans must be made for the development of the sector, said an official of the State Economic and Trade Commission, who did not give him name.

China's manufacturing industry is divided into four sectors and the State should devise special strategies for their development, he proposed

The country's advantageous manufacturing industries, such as the garment and electronic products sectors, should grow as fast as possible to become competitive in the international market. Both sectors are labor-intensive.

China enjoys advantages in the labor costs and production technology involved in these areas.

Efforts should concentrate on introducing new technologies into the intensive-intensive sectors, creating famous brands, expanding exports, encouraging enterprises to establish projects overseas or developing processing trade projects in foreign countries, the official said.

The new building materials and farm machinery industries, which are in great demand in the domestic market now enjoys unique advantages over foreign products due to low production and transportation costs should be encouraged to develop further. Chinese enterprises can also manufacture farm equipment according to special demand from farmers.

The sectors should take advantage of the self-reliance policy in technology renovation and quality and service improvement to capture larger shares of the domestic market by providing better and cheaper products, he said

Industries which have great market potential but are still backward should be the focus for international co-operation in order to realize fast development, he said.

China is still backward in technology-intensive and capital-intensive industries such as automobiles, heavy machinery, aircraft, oil and chemical products, iron and steel, semi-conductors, computers and telecommunications.

However, China has a large market potential for these products and efforts should be made to improve investment environment and attract foreign technology and capital into these areas.

The manufacturing industry with high and new technology should also be focused on development. More investment should be poured into the research and development of new technologies, and a sound system is necessary to encourage the development of patented technologies.

In addition, foreign enterprises should be encouraged to establish R&D centers in China to help update the country's technology level, he said.

(China Daily 10/16/2001)