China spent $139.7 billion on R&D in 2011, says report

BEIJING: China has stepped up its research and development in various fields by spending 1.83 per cent of its GDP last year amounting to $139.7 billion to consolidate its recent economic gains.

China's spending in R&D last year surged 21.9 per cent year-on-year to 861 billion yuan (USD139.7 billion), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in the country's 2011 statistics report.

The R&D spending represents 1.83 per cent of China's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2011, which grew 9.2 per cent year-on-year to 47.16 trillion yuan, it said.

"China has supported the implementation of significant scientific projects and promoted the construction of regional innovation systems with their own characteristics," Xie Hongguang, NBS deputy chief was quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua new agency.

Last year, China spent 39.6 billion yuan on basic R&D projects, which included construction of 130 national engineering research centers and 119 national engineering laboratories, the report said.

China's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) outlined a road map for scientific innovation capability.

China will take strong measures to improve its scientific capability, including promoting significant breakthroughs in science and technology, reinforcing the construction of scientific infrastructure, and strengthening policy support for scientific and technological innovation, the report said.