The press conference of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on October 24, 2025 Photo: State Council Information Office website

A senior official said Friday that the recommendations of the Communist Party of China (CPC) for the 15th Five-Year Plan have made it a top priority to build a modernized industrial system and reinforce the foundations of the real economy. 

Zheng Shanjie, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, made the remarks at a press conference.

The recommendations put forward cultivating emerging pillar industries and accelerating the development of strategic emerging industrial clusters in sectors including new energy, new materials, aerospace, and low-altitude economy, which will give rise to multiple trillion-yuan-scale and even larger markets. Meanwhile, the recommendations call for developing future industries in advance, and promote sectors such as quantum technology, bio-manufacturing, brain-computer interface and 6G as new economic growth levers, Zheng said.

With stepped-up efforts in these regards, the expanded market size will be equivalent to building a new high-tech industry over next 10 years, which will inject sustained fresh momentum to China's economy and high-quality development, the official said.

In addition to ramping up innovation, efforts will also be made on upgrading some traditional industries, the senior official said, noting that traditional industries are the foundation of China's industrial system, with their total value added accounting for around 80 percent of the country's manufacturing sector.

The recommendations contain measures to upgrade the quality of major industries, consolidate and enhance the international status and competitiveness of major manufacturing sectors such as chemicals, machinery, and shipbuilding, and vigorously develop advanced manufacturing clusters in China. These initiatives will accelerate the effective improvement in quality and reasonable expansion in the market size of traditional industries. Preliminary estimation suggests that approximately 10 trillion yuan in market size will be added during the next five years, which will unlock tremendous momentum for development and significantly benefit people's livelihoods, Zheng said.

The recommendations emphasize strengthening homegrown innovations and nourishing core technological breakthroughs. By improving the system for mobilizing nationwide resources, they call for decisive progress in key technologies including semiconductors, machine tools and high-end equipment making, Chinese Minister of Science and Technology Yin Hejun said.

And, the recommendations have outlined a series of major science and technology initiatives during the coming five years. Efforts will be made to strengthen the strategic, forward-looking, and systematic layout of basic research. By reinforcing the orientation toward homegrown innovation in scientific research and technological development, more breakthroughs will come out, Yin said.

"We believe that after five more years of dedicated efforts, China's scientific and technological strength will take another major step forward. Scientific and technological innovation will play an even greater role in leading the development of new quality productive forces and promoting China's high-quality growth," Yin said.