As a major global equipment manufacturing country, the output of many equipment products in China ranks first in the world, and the proportion of output value exceeds one-third of the world. However, China's export-oriented equipment manufacturing industry is currently facing a global demand structure change and the rise of protectionism, coupled with the double squeeze caused by the "high-end recirculation" of developed countries and the "low- and middle-end diversion" of developing countries. .
Big but not strong status quo
At the National Equipment Working Conference held in Nanning, Guangxi a few days ago, the participants believed that in recent years, with the rapid development of the equipment industry, China has become a veritable equipment manufacturing country. Components and key materials manufacturers still rely on imports.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in 2013, the output value of China's equipment manufacturing industry exceeded 20 trillion yuan, accounting for more than one-third of the global equipment manufacturing industry, ranking first in the world. The output of most equipment products in China ranks first in the world. In 2013, power generation equipment output accounted for about 60% of the global total; shipbuilding completions accounted for 41% of the global share; automotive output accounted for 25% of the global share; machine tool output accounted for 38% of the global share.
Although China has become a major country in the equipment manufacturing industry, there is still a large gap compared with advanced countries. The main manifestations are: first, the weak ability of independent innovation, low level of R & D and design, insufficient testing methods, and lack of key common technologies; second, insufficient basic supporting capabilities, core components being controlled by people, basic manufacturing processes lagging behind, and key materials relying on imports; three The industrial structure is irrational, with low-end excess capacity, insufficient high-end capacity, and lagging development of productive services. Fourth, the development quality and efficiency are not high. At present, the value-added rate of China's equipment industry is 26%, which is 6-8 lower than the average level of developed countries. percentage point.
"Some of the key equipment in the internal combustion engine industry are almost all imported, and the core technology of the engine is mostly foreign. Without mastering key equipment and key technologies, the industry's profit margin is low. Selling a diesel engine costs 20,000 to 30,000 yuan, and the profit may only be tens of thousands. In addition, it also caused serious competition within the industry, mainly price and cost. "Liu Yuanqiang, vice president of Weichai Power Co., Ltd. said.
The export-oriented model is hit
People in the industry believe that the current global industrial structure is facing new adjustments, coupled with China's economy entering a period of transition and development at a medium and high speed, and the profound changes in the domestic and international situations have brought unprecedented risks and challenges to China's equipment manufacturing industry.
First, changes in the global demand structure have caused a greater impact on the development of China's equipment manufacturing industry. Su Bo, Deputy Minister of Industry and Information Technology, said that after the international financial crisis, the world economy is in a period of deep adjustment. There is uncertainty in the direction of change in the monetary policies, trade and investment patterns, and commodity prices of large countries. It is difficult to see a strong recovery in the short term. This will form a large structural constraint on the equipment manufacturing industry with obvious export-oriented characteristics.
Declining demand in the international market has also led to a rise in protectionism. Trade protection against China's equipment manufacturing industry has increased, expanded its scope, and deepened. According to statistics from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in 2013, China suffered 89 trade remedy investigations with a total value of 3.6 billion U.S. dollars and became one of the biggest victims in the US 337 investigation.
Secondly, it faces the double squeeze of “high-end reflow” in developed countries and “mid- and low-end diversion” in developing countries. Su Bo said that the international financial crisis has led developed countries to implement "reindustrialization" and "manufacturing return" strategies in an attempt to seize the high-end manufacturing market and continuously expand their competitive advantages. At the same time, emerging economies rely on comparative advantages such as resources and labor to develop processing and manufacturing industries, to undertake labor-intensive industry transfers at lower labor costs, and to form homogeneous competition with China.
In addition, the restructuring and development of the domestic economy has increased the pressure on the structural adjustment and industrial upgrading of the equipment manufacturing industry. The industry analysis shows that China's economy is in a period of shifting growth rates, a period of structural adjustment, and a period of "three-phase superposition" in the digestion period of the previous stimulus policy. The 25% annual super-high-speed growth era of the equipment manufacturing industry has ended, and production in some industries is approaching Or it has reached a historical peak, and the development model that relies too much on investment stimulus and scale expansion is no longer sustainable.
Urgent need for transformation and upgrading
People in the industry believe that the current problems in China's equipment manufacturing industry include lagging standards, irregularities, and low thresholds, which hinder product transformation and upgrading to a certain extent.
Liao Qiang, deputy director of the Department of Industry and Information Technology of Hainan Province, believes that relevant departments should systematically sort out relevant standards in the field of equipment manufacturing. .
In addition, there is an urgent need to accelerate the structural adjustment of the high-end equipment manufacturing industry and achieve breakthroughs in some key technologies and equipment. Su Bo said that the high-end equipment manufacturing industry is the core of the equipment manufacturing industry and the most important indicator for measuring a country's core industry competitiveness. Vigorously developing high-end equipment manufacturing is the main battlefield for accelerating industrial transformation and upgrading and building a strong nation in equipment manufacturing. We must attach great importance to it and strive to achieve major breakthroughs in several key areas.
At present, the overall capacity of China's equipment manufacturing industry is overcapacity. Some business people believe that it is necessary to step up the "going out" step to regulate the excess capacity, regulate the "going out" behavior, and avoid disorderly competition.
Liu Tianjun, chief engineer of Huadian Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. said that some equipment companies are still engaged in price wars abroad. Such disorderly competition affects the effectiveness of enterprises in exploring overseas markets, and relevant departments and industry associations should strengthen coordination.
