The financial sector drives innovation in the country | So Good News

Officials and experts said Tuesday that the financial services sector and its innovation are playing an important role in helping China’s technological development, industrial upgrading and Chinese modernization.

At the annual Financial Street Forum, Wen Qiwen of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said cooperation between financial innovation and industrial upgrading, especially in the manufacturing sector, is the key to China’s high-quality growth.

Historically, industrial revolutions have typically started with technological innovation and succeeded only with financial innovation playing an integral role, he said, and the current phase of technological transformation is providing the financial sector with new missions.

He called for stronger synergistic work with the financial sector to create a financial education system for comparable industries and a way to adapt to industry changes. It is key to stabilizing supply and industrial chains, promoting industrial growth and helping to protect against and mitigate financial risks.

According to Weng, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is now working with the Ministry of Finance and other central financial authorities to promote the virtuous circle between industrial upgrading and financial development in several directions. In this process, the creation of a national production capacity platform will help improve the quality and efficiency of financial and production cooperation by using big data as a productive factor.

In the future, he proposed to create a consolidated model of financial support for selected industries. The financial services provision structure should be optimized by expanding re-crediting for scientific innovation and technological upgrading. He also suggested that equity financing and bond financing should lean more heavily on the manufacturing industry.

Wu Xiaoqiu, a senior economist and former vice president of Renmin University of China, also expressed his views at the same forum. Noting that China is at an important stage in realizing high-quality growth, Wu noted that technological innovation is gaining momentum and financial services are expanding their support for such innovation.

“The age of technological and industrial transformation is always full of uncertainties. Such uncertainties can be too much for one business or start-up firm to handle on its own. Therefore, the financial system can help facilitate sustainable, high-quality growth. They share the risks and challenges during this process,” – he said.