Publicado · Chile

China's New Quality Productive Forces: A Guide for Foreign Founders

A practical summary of China's official policy on developing new quality productive forces, highlighting opportunities and considerations for foreign entrepreneurs registering and operating a company in China.

Understanding China's New Quality Productive Forces Policy

China's government has issued a major policy framework on developing "new quality productive forces." For foreign founders, this document signals where the country sees future growth and how regulations and incentives may evolve. Below is a practical summary of the key points, framed for those setting up or running a business in China.

Core Direction: Innovation and Efficiency

The policy emphasizes innovation as the primary driver, with reform as a key tool. It calls for tailoring measures to local conditions and ensuring continuity. The core marker is a substantial rise in total factor productivity, achieved through technological breakthroughs, better allocation of production factors, and deep industrial upgrading. The aim is to create production relations that better match new quality productive forces and a supportive ecosystem for integrating technological and industrial innovation.

Strengthening Original and Disruptive Innovation

The policy directs major science projects toward strategic, landmark, and leading products, focusing on world frontiers, economic mainfields, national needs, and public health. It supports both goal-oriented and free exploration in basic research. It calls for coordinated science platforms, major infrastructure with open sharing, and programs for basic and interdisciplinary breakthroughs. For foreign founders in R&D, this suggests potential access to shared facilities and a push for original theory and key technologies.

Breaking Through Key Core Technologies

Using a new nationwide system, the policy organizes actions for high-quality development of key manufacturing supply chains and industrial innovation projects. It emphasizes full-chain research, all-factor support, and ecosystem building. Policies for first-of-its-kind and first-batch applications aim to speed up technology iteration.

Leveraging National Strategic Science and Technology Forces

National laboratories will lead major projects and platforms, with pilot reforms. The policy optimizes the roles of national research institutes, high-level research universities, and leading tech enterprises. It plans to gradually establish compensation systems for universities and institutes that stimulate innovation and value knowledge, while allowing more flexible management for research public institutions. Leading tech enterprises are expected to play a key role in integrating innovation, industrial, capital, and talent chains.

Reinforcing Enterprises' Central Role in Innovation

The policy calls for universal incentive policies, a corporate R&D reserve system, and stronger corporate investment in science. It encourages small and medium tech firms to increase R&D and raises the super deduction ratio for R&D expenses. Eligible corporate R&D projects can be elevated to national projects. Private firms with capacity are supported to lead major national technology missions. User evaluation mechanisms and enterprise-led commercialization are emphasized. State-owned enterprises will have arrangements for original innovation, and specialized SMEs are supported.

Accelerating Commercialization of Scientific Results

Using the large market, the policy promotes alignment of technology and market, and large-scale application demonstrations. It plans validation and pilot-testing platforms and opens application scenarios. Science projects will be evaluated throughout, with R&D and commercialization tasks deployed together and application performance assessed at acceptance. Universities and institutes are guided to license results to SMEs on a "use first, pay later" basis. Large firms should open supply chains to SMEs, and AI is to lead changes in research paradigms.

Transforming Traditional Industries

The policy aims to upgrade traditional sectors using national standards, digital and intelligent technologies, and green technologies. It organizes actions to improve key industries such as mining, metallurgy, chemicals, light industry, textiles, machinery, shipbuilding, and construction. It includes industrial base reconstruction, major equipment research, manufacturing upgrades, and large-scale equipment renewal. Financial support and tax incentives for technological upgrades are highlighted. Quality infrastructure and branding are strengthened. Agriculture actions include grain capacity, seed industry, smart farming, machinery, and new forms like agricultural factories. Services are to expand and upgrade, with producer services moving up the value chain.

Cultivating Emerging Industries

The policy seeks to build new pillar industries in next-generation information technology, new energy, new materials, intelligent connected vehicles, robotics, biotech, high-end equipment, and aerospace. It calls for distinctive, complementary clusters and deeper specialization to avoid "involutionary" competition. Cross-regional collaboration led by supply chains and enterprises is encouraged, with eastern regions supporting central, western, and northeastern regions. Low-altitude economy and commercial space are to develop safely and orderly.

Planning Future Industries

For quantum tech, biomanufacturing, hydrogen and fusion, brain-computer interfaces, embodied intelligence, and 6G, the policy explores diverse technical routes, scenarios, business models, and regulation. It aims to build a complete ecosystem, with investment growth and risk-sharing mechanisms, using fiscal policies and guiding social capital.

Integrating the Real Economy and Digital Economy

Data property rights, trading, benefit distribution, and protection systems will be improved. Pilot projects for data factors aim to unlock value. National data infrastructure will be optimized, with actions for manufacturing digital transformation, "East Data West Computing," smart manufacturing, and industrial internet. A national integrated computing network and blockchain network are planned. Policies support digital industrialization and industrial digitalization, aiming for internationally competitive digital clusters.

Implementing the "AI+" Action

AI will transform traditional industries, with applications in intelligent connected vehicles, AI phones and computers, and humanoid robots. The policy accelerates AI and digital tech innovation, breakthroughs in basic theory and core tech, and efficient supply of computing power, algorithms, and data. National AI application pilot bases and high-value scenarios will be laid out by industry. Monitoring, risk warning, and emergency response systems aim to keep AI safe, reliable, and controllable.

Building a Green, Low-Carbon Circular Economy

The policy strengthens green manufacturing, services, and energy. It combines source reduction, process control, and end-of-pipe treatment, with green tech innovation and application. Green consumption incentives, certification, and labeling are promoted. Zero-carbon factories and parks are to be built. Resource management and waste recycling systems will improve.

Optimizing Green Development Policy Tools

Fiscal, financial, investment, price, technology, and environmental policies will support green low-carbon development. Ecological product value mechanisms, carbon emission dual control, statistics, standards, carbon labeling, and footprint management are included. The national carbon market will be the main body for carbon pricing, with expanded coverage, optimized allowance allocation, a voluntary emission reduction market, and a unified green certificate market. Financial institutions should offer diverse green products. Government green procurement and green tax systems will be optimized, and green-oriented agricultural subsidies implemented.

Advancing the Energy Revolution

Toward carbon peak and neutrality, the policy calls for orderly advanced nuclear fission, a high-share renewable power system, improved new energy consumption and regulation, major application demonstrations, and greener energy use across society. It aims to revolutionize energy consumption, supply, technology, and systems, with international cooperation.

Deepening Reform for Science-Economy Integration

Science tasks will be deployed in major national projects as needed, with demand-oriented topic selection, consistent responsibility-rights management, and application-oriented evaluation. Reforms will grant ownership of job-related scientific results and separate asset management. Qualified state-owned enterprises can use various incentives. A national integrated data market that is open, shared, and secure will be built, along with an efficient technology market.

Improving Market Regulation

Market access, anti-monopoly, and anti-unfair competition rules will improve. Governance in AI and biology will be strengthened. Cross-departmental joint regulation, innovative methods, fewer on-site inspections, and data-based decision-making and management are encouraged. An efficient intellectual property management system and punitive damages will be improved. Tax rules for new business forms will be studied.

Increasing Financial Innovation Products

The policy encourages and regulates angel investment, venture capital, and private equity. Government investment funds should guide more effectively. Support policies for long-term capital investing early, small, long-term, and in hard tech will improve, growing patient capital. Banks should develop loan products suited to new quality productive forces. Science-tech bond products will be enriched, quality tech firms supported to list and finance, and M&A and equity incentive systems optimized. Insurance covering the entire innovation chain and tech leasing will be explored.

Allocating Advanced Production Factors Globally

High-level opening-up will expand and global markets utilized. Free trade zones should cluster advanced factors based on location, resources, and industry. Multilateral and bilateral mechanisms will promote science parks, "Belt and Road" joint labs, and international advanced technology application centers, building a global innovation network. China will lead and join international big science programs. Foreign venture capital institutions and international standards organizations are encouraged to develop in China. Efficient, convenient, and secure cross-border data flow mechanisms will be established.

Talent for New Quality Productive Forces

Education, science, and talent systems will be reformed together. Higher education will expand with new research universities, and discipline settings will adjust to industry and tech trends. Modern vocational education will develop with integrated work-study training. Talent will be cultivated in practice. Enterprises and universities can jointly customize training, and master craftsmen and highly skilled workers can teach in vocational schools.

This summary is based on information published by the relevant Chinese government website and is general information, not legal or tax advice.

Foreign founders can contact ChinaMNC on WhatsApp / WeChat at +86 153 1898 8535 for help registering and operating a company in China.