China’s Xi Calls For More R&D Spending and High-Tech Talent

(Bloomberg) -- President Xi Jinping is targeting a significant boost in the number of core technology professionals and research and development spending in China by 2025, as the country bids to enhance its tech-competitiveness.

Xi urged China to embrace self-reliance in high tech industries to enhance competition among countries, in comments at a human-resources meeting in Beijing held Monday and Tuesday, according to a report from the official Xinhua News Agency.

Earlier this year Xi renewed his years-long push to achieve technology self-sufficiency by tapping top deputy Liu He to shepherd a key initiative aimed at helping domestic chipmakers overcome U.S. sanctions. 

The latest call to boost certain areas of the technology sector comes at a time when Xi’s “common prosperity” policy and regulatory onslaught on the digital sector has roiled markets. 

The nation’s tech giants are weathering regulatory upheaval on everything from online gaming to data ownership and overseas financing. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. -backed food delivery giant Meituan and ride-hailing app Didi Global Inc. are all under investigation. 

In the comments, Xi also called to accelerate building a global center for talent and innovation, with new efforts in Beijing, Shanghai and Greater Bay area to attract professionals.

China’s white paper called “Epic Journey from Poverty to Prosperity” listed various targets which include achieving breakthrough in core technologies by 2035. 

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

With assistance from Bloomberg