Downtown of Guangzhou. CHINA DAILY

Guangzhou has enhanced investment in advanced manufacturing as a top priority in city's development plan, said Hong Qian, chief of Guangzhou's bureau of commerce.

Last year, the number of contracted manufacturing projects in Guangzhou accounted for 32.7 percent of the city's total.

The new energy vehicle, biomedicine, digital economy, artificial intelligence and high-tech service industries accounted for nearly 70 percent of the city's foreign investment.

The increase in the proportion of manufacturing projects will promote Guangzhou's real economy and accelerate the concentration of key manufacturing industries such as digital economy, biomedicine, new energy and rail transit, Hong said.

With a plug-and-play business environment, Guangzhou is home to many renowned companies in the digital sector, such as Huawei, BOE Technology and Visionox.

There are also more than 3,800 biopharmaceutical companies in Guangzhou, ranking the city third in the country behind Beijing and Shanghai. The city has centered its sector around the Guangzhou Science City, the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City and the Guangzhou International Biological Island, with industrial parks such as the health and medical center, the international health industry zone and the international pharmaceutical port.

The Evergrande New Energy Automobile Nansha production base is planned to be launched in 2021. The world's top 500 companies and industry leaders such as ZF, Baidu and Hyundai Motor have deployed smart car projects in the city.

Guangzhou is also one of the most important production bases and consumer market for the automobile industry in China.

Its automobile production capacity ranks among the strongest in the country, with an annual output of more than 3 million automobiles and an output value of more than 500 billion yuan ($76.9 billion).

The local government's end-of-2020 report on promoting the accelerated development of the automobile industry further supports the new energy smart cars and intelligent network connections. It will focus on building a world-class automotive cluster base during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25).

Guangzhou has introduced 16 rail transit industry projects, racking up a total investment of 36.35 billion yuan.

In recent years, Guangzhou has focused on building high-end development platforms such as the artificial intelligence and digital economy pilot zones.

Also included in the city's high-end development is the Nansha Free Trade Zone, the Guangzhou Development District including the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City and the Airport Economic Demonstration Zone. Industrial investment during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) increased by an average of 10.2 percent each year. The artificial intelligence and digital economy pilot zone has gathered more than 240 projects, with a total investment of over 580 billion yuan.

Last year, the added value of strategic emerging industries accounted for 30 percent of regional GDP. The added value of the modern service industry accounted for 65.1 percent of the total service industry.

In particular, the Guangzhou Futures Exchange was approved to be established. It is the first national financial exchange in Guangzhou and will become an important national financial strategic platform. It will gather a group of banks, securities, funds, futures companies and other financial institutions in Guangzhou.

Guangzhou has 35 industries out of the 41 major industrial categories, and its industrial supporting capacity ranks among the top in China.