Dongguan’s Economy Slows Down, But It Shows Strong Resilience
In recent years, due to various unfavorable factors, Dongguan’s economy has faced greater downward pressure. Since the beginning of this year, China’s foreign trade has recorded a sharp decline in the face of shrinking demand from developed countries, geopolitical disturbances and many other challenges. As a major foreign trade city, Dongguan’s economic development has been under great pressure.
Some economically developed local governments have stabilized the economy by expanding investment and launching large-scale projects. As a comparison, if Dongguan can find a way to achieve economic recovery and upgrade its growth mainly through market forces, then Dongguan’s economic development path will be of more reference significance to other regions of China.
Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Leading the Development of China’s Cutting-Edge Technology
Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory covers an area of 291 acres. In its industrial park, in addition to common laboratories, there are also testing production lines in operation. And just across the street, a model factory that has been equipped with an assembled production line is about to go into production. From theoretical breakthroughs to mass production, all of these work is done in the same laboratory.
Although it is only a provincial level laboratory, Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory positions itself as a counterpart of other national laboratories in the world. These laboratories have core competitiveness that cannot be compared with other institutions. They also hire first-class scientific and technological innovation talents. What Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory wants to solve is a global problem: to bridge the gap from scientific research results to productivity. In this era where scientific and technological strength has increasingly become a point of strategic competition between countries, scientific and technological innovation will work as the driving force for sustainable economic development. In this sense, Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory has multiple missions.
Dongguan is Upgrading Its Manufacturing Industry for an Innovative Revival
At the beginning of China’s reform and opening up, the first batch of export enterprises emerged in Dongguan. Since then, the city has continued to attract investment from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and the world. After 40 years of rapid development, Dongguan has become the “world’s factory”. Dongguan insists on taking manufacturing as its primary development goal and has successfully seized the opportunities of every round of industrial transformation. However, over the past 40 years, as local wages have increased and land prices have risen, a large number of foreign-funded enterprises have begun to move abroad year by year.
Dongguan needs to seek a sustainable development path for foreign trade in the current era of uncertainty. On the one hand, Dongguan should promote the diversification of trade and investment while exploring new international markets. On the other hand, the city urgently need to cultivate new competitive advantages.
Manufacturing Sectors of Dongguan Facing Multiple Challenges
Dongguan’s electronics manufacturing industry has a scale of one trillion yuan and it is the most important economic pillar of the local area. However, under the influence of factors such as the decline in global consumer demand and the restructuring of the global industrial chain, Dongguan’s electronics manufacturing industry is facing severe impact.
Affected by the rising trend of anti-globalization and protectionism, developed countries continue to promote the reshoring of manufacturing industries. This has led to a sharp increase in downward pressure on the manufacturing industry. Electronic manufacturing is an important engine supporting China’s economic and social innovation and development. Facing the complex international environment and the transformation pressure of the manufacturing industry, Dongguan’s electronic information sector needs to find new growth drivers.
