A staff member shows a China Telecom 5G antenna during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, Feb. 27, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

The added value of China's patent-intensive industries in 2022 reached 15.32 trillion yuan (about 2.15 trillion U.S. dollars), contributing 12.7 percent to its GDP, according to a report released by the country's top intellectual property regulator.

The latest data shows that China's patent-intensive industries exhibit strong innovation capabilities and development potential, supporting the country's commitment to pursuing new quality productive forces and high-quality development, the China Intellectual Property Administration noted in a recent monitoring report.

The report highlights that from 2018 to 2022, the added value of China's patent-intensive industries saw an average annual growth rate of 9.36 percent, surpassing the average annual GDP growth rate by 2.37 percentage points during the same period.

The information and communications technology (ICT) service and ICT manufacturing, as representatives of emerging industries, achieved double-digit growth in added value with annual growth rates of 14.86 percent and 10.23 percent, respectively.

Other patent-intensive industries include manufacturing of new equipment and materials, medicine and the medical industry, as well as the environmental protection industry.

High investment in research and development is an important factor driving growth. According to the report, the internal R&D expenditure for patent-intensive industries in China reached 1.14 trillion yuan in 2022, marking an increase of 11.28 percent compared to the previous year and totaling 2.23 times that of non-patent-intensive industries.

In 2022, more than 49 million people were employed in China's patent-intensive industries, accounting for approximately 6.7 percent of overall employment within the entire society.

However, the report noted a gap between China and Western patent leading countries. It cited the latest report from the United States and Europe, revealing that patent-intensive industries contributed 24 percent to the U.S. GDP, with employment accounting for 13 percent. Additionally, the EU's figures that year stood at 17.4 percent and 11 percent, respectively, "significantly surpassing China's levels."

The patent-intensive industries in China still have immense growth potential, and greater efforts should be made to support the development of these industries, the report said.

China has set a target for patent-intensive industries to contribute 13 percent of GDP by 2025.