Photo: VCG

Si Zefu, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee (CPPCC) and Chairman of Harbin Electric Corporation (HE), said on Sunday that China's manufacturing industry remains "big but not strong" in some aspects, mainly reflected in its lack of soft power, manufacturing innovation and management efficiency.

Si made the remarks during a live interview event with the media ahead of the second plenary meeting of the fourth session of the 13th CPPCC National Committee held in Beijing on Sunday.

The chairman began his career in the early 1980s and witnessed the reform and development of China's manufacturing industry. In his view, although there are still many problems, China's manufacturing industry has completed a great transformation from a chaser to a co-runner. 

China has ranked first in the world for manufacturing output for 11 consecutive years, with construction machinery, power generation equipment and other fields among the world's leading. 

"China's manufacturing industry is still big but not strong, as China is inferior in soft power, manufacturing innovation ability and level, product quality and brand, management level and management efficiency, especially profitability. But China's manufacturing industry will seize the opportunity during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) and quickly make up for its shortcomings," said Si.

Si added that China has come a long way as a manufacturing heavyweight and will be able to reach the ideal destination step by step, no matter how long the road is.

Global Times