China hits out at 'one-sided' depiction of industrial success

China's industrial competitiveness is built on intense market competition, a well-coordinated industrial system and an improving business environment, not simply government subsidies, a spokeswoman for the National Development and Reform Commission has said.

Li Chao made the remarks in response to media questions on reports attributing Chinese companies' rising global market shares in some key sectors mainly to government subsidies.

"Such claims are one-sided and completely wrong," Li said, adding that China's industrial competitiveness reflects the combined strength of multiple factors.

One of those factors, she said, is the strong competition generated by China's vast domestic market.

"In a market with more than 180 million business entities, companies and products have to keep innovating, making breakthroughs and upgrading themselves in order to stand out," Li said.

A recently released annual member survey conducted by the US-China Business Council found that 95 percent of respondents considered China "somewhat to very important" for staying globally competitive, citing the country's rich testing scenarios and highly competitive market environment.

Li added that the country's industrial strengths are underpinned by a complete and well-coordinated industrial system, with years of investment in education, technology and talent producing results.

Continued improvements in China's business environment have also helped reinforce those strengths, Li said, adding that the country has fostered fair competition and created more room for all types of enterprises to grow.

"We oppose politicizing and weaponizing economic and trade issues, and are willing to work with all parties to deepen practical cooperation and jointly build a global industrial and supply chain system that is more secure, stable and efficient, while remaining open, inclusive and mutually beneficial," Li added.