Fast growth was registered in industrial production. The total value-added of the industrial sector was 5,361.2 billion yuan (US$645.93 billion) in 2003, an increase of 12.6 percent over the previous year. The value-added of industrial enterprises above designated size (i.e. all state-owned enterprises and those non-state-owned enterprises with an annual sales income over 5 million yuan or US$602,000) was up by 17 percent (see Table 3). The sales ratio of industrial enterprises was 98.1 percent, or 0.1 percentage points higher than that in the previous year.

Table3: Value-added of the Industrial Sector, 2003

The nation's high-tech sector recorded relatively high growth in 2003. Of the total industrial enterprises above designated size, the value-added of high-tech industry was up 20.6 percent over the previous year. The output of optical telecommunications facilities, programme-controlled switchboards, mobilephones and microcomputers increased by 25.9 percent to 120 percent (see Table 4).

Table 4: Output of Major Industrial Products, 2003

Energy production accelerated. The total output of primary energy reached 1,603 million tons of standard coal equivalent, up by 11.0 percent over the previous year. Electricity generated for the whole year was 1,910.76 billion kilowatt-hours, up by 15.5 percent. Coal output was 1,667 million tons, up by 15.0 percent. Crude oil output reached 170 million tons, up by 1.8 percent.

The production of major raw materials also grew at a fast pace. The value-added of the smelting and pressing of ferrous metals in 2003 was up 22.6 percent over the previous year; nonferrous metals was up 18.1 percent; raw chemical materials and chemical products were up 14.1 percent; and nonmetal mineral products was up 16.6 percent. In terms of different products, steel output stood at 222 million tons, up by 21.9 percent; and rolled steel output was 241 million tons, up by 25.3 percent. The production of 10 kinds of nonferrous metals went up by 19.1 percent; aluminum oxide was up by 11.2 percent; caustic soda saw a 7.7 percent growth and cement witnessed a growth of 18.9 percent.

The automobile industry's growth momentum was strong in 2003, with the value-added of the transport equipment manufacturing industry increasing by 22.0 percent. Vehicle output was 4.444 million, up by 36.7 percent. Of this total, car output reached 2.02 million, up by 85.0 percent.

The industrial sector's economic efficiency improved significantly. The total volume of profits made by industrial enterprises above designated size stood at 815.2 billion yuan (US$98.22 billion) during the year, up by 42.7 percent over the previous year. Of the total, State-owned and State-controlled enterprises' profits stood at 378.4 billion yuan (US$45.59 billion), up by 45.2 percent; that of the collective enterprises was 48.0 billion yuan (US$5.78 billion), up by 31.4 percent. Profits earned by share-holding enterprise reached 376.46 billion yuan (US$45.36 billion), up by 46 percent; that of foreign invested enterprises and enterprises invested by compatriots from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan stood at 268.05 billion yuan (US$32.30 billion), up by 40.5 percent. The total volume of losses made by loss-suffering enterprises was down by 1.9 percent. The proportion of industries making a profit increased significantly. Thirty-eight out of the total 39 branches of industry saw a growth in profits. The increased profits of the following branches accounted for 48.7 percent of the total increase of profits by the industrial sector: petroleum and natural gas extraction, transport equipment manufacturing, smelting and pressing of ferrous metals, chemical industry and the power industry.

The construction industry maintained fast growth. In 2003, the value-added of construction enterprises in China was 816.6 billion yuan (US$98.39 billion), up by 11.9 percent over the previous year. Profits made by construction enterprises with certain qualification through general contracts and specialized contracts reached 45.9 billion yuan (US$5.53 billion), up by 23.8 percent.

(China.org. cn March 1, 2004)