This Sept 25, 2018 photo shows a worker at a pump truck making factory in Zhangjiakou, Hebei province. (PHOTO / IC)

BEIJING — China's industrial economy managed to maintain stable growth in 2022, serving as the "ballast stone" of the country's macroeconomy and a key driver for economic recovery.

The Chinese economy grew 3 percent in 2022, while its value-added industrial output went up 3.6 percent year-on-year, official data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

The equipment manufacturing sub-sector registered fast expansion in 2022, with its value-added output up 5.6 percent from 2021. The sub-sector posted a contribution rate of 50.3 percent to the industrial growth in 2022, providing a strong impetus for the overall industry

"The contribution rate of the industrial sector to the economic growth reached 36 percent in 2022, a relatively higher level over recent years," said Tian Yulong, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

READ MORE: Industrial economy on steady track

Major growth driver

Among all the industrial sectors, manufacturing contributed the lion's share to the economic growth, according to Tian. The value-added output of manufacturing accounted for 27.7 percent of GDP in 2022, 0.2 percentage points higher than that in 2021.

Specifically, the equipment manufacturing sub-sector registered fast expansion in 2022, with its value-added output up 5.6 percent from 2021. The sub-sector posted a contribution rate of 50.3 percent to the industrial growth in 2022, providing a strong impetus for the overall industry.

The information and communications sector, an incubator of new businesses and new applications, continued to grow in 2022. The full-year revenue of China's telecom business reached 1.58 trillion yuan (about $233.38 billion), up 8 percent year-on-year, said Zhao Zhiguo, an official with the MIIT.

The country has ramped up investment to improve its telecom infrastructure in 2022. China built 887,000 new 5G base stations last year, said Tian. The new stations have brought the country's total number to 2.31 million, taking up over 60 percent of the world's total.

China also made headway in developing the mobile Internet of Things (IoT). The number of mobile IoT connections in China reached 1.84 billion in 2022, making it the first country among major economies to see mobile IoT connections surpass the number of mobile phone users.

READ MORE: China to further shore up industrial economy

Key necessity supplier

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, China has managed to increase the supply of essential medical necessities thanks to its efficient industrial chains.

By Jan 17, the daily production capacity of ibuprofen and paracetamol, key drugs for fighting pain and fevers, had remained above 200 million tablets for 17 consecutive days. A total of 5.14 billion ibuprofen and paracetamol tablets had been supplied, according to Tian.

In terms of medical equipment, the daily output of the much-needed finger pulse oximeters has exceeded 460,000, meeting the needs of medical institutions and society, Tian said.

Despite a complex external environment and mounting pressures facing the industrial field in 2023, the spokesperson said China's fundamentals of industrial growth remain solid.

READ MORE: Expert: China to see steady industrial output

As the market vitality, consumption potential, and the impetus driving industrial upgrade are to be further released, the industrial recovery will deliver stronger underpinnings for the macroeconomy this year, according to Tian.