Photo: Screenshot from the CCTV News

China's gross ocean product exceeded 11 trillion yuan ($1.65 trillion) in 2025, with offshore wind power capacity leading the world and advances in marine technology further boosting the sector's international competitiveness, according to a report on China's marine economic development released on Thursday.

The report, issued jointly by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Natural Resources, showed that China's gross ocean product accounted for 7.9 percent of the country's GDP in 2025, as the marine economy emerged as a key growth driver and strengthened the country's foundation as a maritime power.

China has accelerated the development of its modern marine industry system in recent years, with stronger global competitiveness in shipbuilding, marine engineering, maritime transport and fisheries, as well as major achievements in various areas, according to the report.

The country leads the world in offshore wind power capacity, has a daily seawater desalination capacity exceeding 3 million tons, and accounts for 28 percent of globally developed marine drugs, while expanding high-end maritime services, the report showed. 

The report also noted that China has accelerated marine science and technology innovation, with the manned deep-sea submersibles Jiaolong and Fendouzhe completing China's first ice-zone dive in the Arctic in collaboration, and China's intelligent meteorological early warning system MAZU entering operational use.

China's breakthroughs in marine science and technology are significant not only because its key technologies and major equipment have reached internationally advanced levels, but also because they are helping shift its competitive edge from scale and cost to innovation, advanced technology and integrated industrial-chain strengths, said Yu Minna, professor from the Law School of Ocean University of China.

These achievements highlight China's transition from a major marine industry player to a global leader in marine science and technology, Yu told the Global Times on Thursday.

Notably, China has continued to step up efforts to boost the development of the marine economy, with central authorities and various localities introducing a series of policy measures to steadily strengthen their overall marine economic competitiveness. 

On Thursday, North China's Tianjin Municipality outlined its marine economy development plan for the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30) at a press conference, describing the sector as key to advancing China's maritime power strategy, promoting Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei regional integration, fostering new quality productive forces and creating new sources of economic growth.

Fu Yifu, an industry analyst, said that the potential of the marine economy lies not simply in increasing its output value, but in establishing an integrated, multi-use model for the comprehensive development of ocean resources. If China achieves breakthroughs in key equipment, commercial deep-sea resource development and blue carbon trading, China's marine economy could make a historic shift from scale to strength within a decade, Jiemian News reported.